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darling-answers · 7 months

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Hey it me again! I was wondering if you could write a request with Genji and Hanzo with a sister reader suffering from a disability or disease?

Owner - This is right up my alley way! I will be writing base off my disability’s sense it didn’t specify, this is based on how I perceive it and I hope it to your liking❤️

I suffer from a lot of leg disability which makes me sometimes not be able to walk because it painful or my legs feel tingly.

This could be spoilers if you have not seen Dragons

Hanzo

- This man Has all the respect he gives to you, He knows sometimes you aren’t feeling the best and your self confidence are plumbing down because of how everyone overshadows you because there to busy looking on your disability being a more of a burden than the outstanding qualities you have.

- When there days when you can’t walk or your legs are to numb to even move you can expect Hanzo to be on his hands and feet helping his little sister with doing basic necessities even when the servants of the shimada beg him to allow them to help the shimada sister out, Hanzo refuses, as the oldest and also the protected and next head of the clan he refuses to let his younger sister be seen as inferior. She is just as perfect and noble as him and he will not let anyone tell him no.

- Once the Fight with Genji happen and Hanzo left the shimada clan, the whole time he worried about you, the fact your all alone and having to take on Hanzo burden while also carrying your own made Hanzo morn more not for only genji but for you, knowing how he was your protected and he stripped you away from that for a selfish act of trying to protect you only to backstabbed you.

- Once Genji is revealed to be alive and Hanzo snuck back into the palace to commemorate the battle between him and his younger brother he finally meets up with you, he expected you to punch or smack him, but when you just gave a smile at him, his heart flutter and that promise he made to you, promising to love and protect you no matter what, reflects now upon him taking care of you no matter what chance he gets.

- I definitely feel he realizes a little bit ago that you always saw him snuck into the palace on the anniversary but woudlnt say anything because of the heartache between you two and the fact the servants would definitely catch on, that she might be seeing someone on top of both the shimada brothers dispersing of the clan on the day.

——————- Game Conversation

Shimada sister - I remember sneaking into the palace on days where I wasn’t supposed to… I miss the old Genji and Hanzo who had no pain and heartache.

Hanzo- You were always unsuccessful in sneaking up on us but we still allow you to my dear sister, while the old Hanzo and Genji are dead, do you think that we could make the new one better?

Genji

- When he was younger he felt jealousy because he didn’t realize what was the matter with you and would get scolded for how brutal his words towards you not realize how Much harder you had than him. When the accident happened on your 7th birthday that when he truly realized how fragile you were and he made Hanzo and himself promise to always protect you and to never let anything bad happen to you.

- He use to pick up trinkets on the side of the road or at a concession stand when he felt like you may like it, and he would give it to you knowing that you couldn’t go outside often and when you did you were only allowed on supervision around the perimeter. He made sure to take time, knowing about your favorite color and everything that you liked so when he got home from seeing under the palace that he would give you some thing of your liking.

- when he would bring a girl home because he was a playboy if they even dared to insult you in any way on your disability, he would first Kick there ass and then kick them out of the palace not even caring about his reputation or how much he liked the woman. Your health and happiness matter above everything else and no matter how uncomfortable a situation could be, he knows that his life should be taken for granted because he doesn’t have to suffer the way you do everyday.

- He thinks you’re absolutely badass for always having a smile on your face even when you were in pain, never showing weakness to your family members, or the servants. He thinks on all else you deserve the title of heir.

- when the incident happened between the brothers, his heart would ache knowing the fact that you didn’t know if he was alive or dead, and when he came out that he supposedly died, he wishes he told you sooner that he was alive to not let you suffer the heartache of losing both of your brothers in all ways possible.

- when he revealed his face to Hanzo he made his brother promise that he would always take care of the shimada sister and protect her from anyone who ever tries to get revenge against any of what the clan or the brothers did. He would stand behind your shadow like a guard dog waiting for someone to dare make a bad move on you.

- when he revealed you that he was alive he would still leave small trinkets to you every time you would fall asleep, he would wait for you to fall asleep to make sure that you were protective and then plant your favorite kind of flowers in a vase so you would know he is always with you even if you couldn’t see him.

——- Game conversation

Shimada sister - “ you know you always have a place by my side as my heart still beats for the urge for you to take your place next to me.”

Genji - “ your loyalty for your people and the people around you shows how kind your soul is, they do not deserve that type of respect you give sister. You deserve much better than what they give you credit for.”

#overwatch #darlingfics #Genji #Hanzo #hanzo shimada #genji shimada #overwatch headcanons #overwatch fanfiction #overwatch imagine

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captain-of-the-roses · 4 years

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Ok so you can completely ingnor this but I'm gonna say it anyways. Not all of us Christians are bad. Yes some people who claim to be christians are homophobic and whatnot but are they really Christians then? The whole Christian thing is we try to live a life of love and stuff. So if someone really is Christian they wouldn't care who you like, what religion you believe in, or what you look like. Our job is to just spread the word of Christ not force it onto people or hate thise unlike us. I'm a Christian who has a bunch of friends who are gay, nonbinary, of different colors, and even other religions but I dont force my religion on them. I even go and learn other religions even if I dont agree with them, I just think they are neat. I'm pretty sure the only well you can tell I'm Christian is the fact I correct people about inaccurate facts I know and I make sure to capitalize God and write other gods in lowercase and even say aloud "with a little g". So I'm sorry if you hate us but not all of us are like that. Alright I'm done have a good night.

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because-i-am-barely-even-human · 3 years

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It all started with the sudden idea of Buck having a teenage son who is being passive-aggressive towards Ana because of Christopher, and then it turned into this.

Actually, I had some thoughts about Buck having a kid due to teenage pregnancy for some time, I just couldn't come up with the right scenario, only some vague ideas. But now here we are. Enjoy this drabble(?) because it stopped being a prompt a few paragraphs ago 😂

I can't seem to leave Ana alone, she's really suffering in my blog 😆

P. S. I'm not sure what age Buck is in canon. Is he like 30 in season 4-5? I don't know. I have no clue how many years passed since Eddie showed up, the show is pretty vague on the timeline (at least for me). I think by the time of season 4 Eddie was in LA for 2 years minimum. I'll leave it at that.

Let's say here Buck was 16 when his son was born.

Jasper is 14 years old during s2, then 16 during s4.

Buck is 30 years old (s2), then 32 (s4). I know he was younger in s2 in canon but I'll smudge some numbers for this story 🙃

***

Due to neglectful parents and wild teenagerhood Buck has a 14 year old son.

Buck’s parents couldn’t care less for the first child of their irresponsible son. To save their reputation once again they decided to move to another city and subsequently to cut Evan off out of the kid’s life.

Joke’s on Phillip and Margaret Buckley but, contrary to popular belief, Evan was not irresponsible, despite the accidental teenage pregnancy. Things happen, that’s life.

Buck had a job, saved some money for living, and, since this job was a pretty stable one for a 16 year old, it was enough to get emancipated. Buck stayed in the hometown to be there for his kid and help his ex-girlfriend. They decided to stay friends.

***

Eddie was shocked to find out that his new friend has a 14 year old son. Buck was quite young, so he never would have guessed that he has a kid of that age. But it was actually what brought Buck and Eddie more closer. Becoming a parent when you’re not ready, and then being a single father is hard, and Evan knows it from the firsthand experience. They bonded over this.

It didn’t hurt that Christopher followed Jasper Buckley like a little duckling, and Jasper in turn took Chris under his wing and got protective every time someone as much as looked at the little boy the wrong way.

***

Ana Flores thought she knew what she was getting into when she started dating Edmundo Diaz. An army vet, a firefighter and a father to a child with disability. She’s confident she could handle all of this.

What she wasn’t ready for is for a 16-year old kid to show up at Diaz house one evening, letting himself in with his own key and start talking frantically about some school project, it would seem. His name sounds familiar but she can’t remember why.

It took him a few minutes to notice that she was there, a recognition flashed in the boy’s eyes, and the instant glare sent her way was filled with such contempt that Ana had a sudden urge to leave the country.

Then another bombshell - the kid called her boyfriend papa.

***

You see, Jasper is sassy, and sarcastic, and a little bit of a bastard but it takes a lot for him to actually hate someone. For example, his paternal grandparents. He only met them once when he was 5 years old.

It took exactly 5 minutes for them to stress out his dad and for Jasper to start throwing his favorite and faithful blocks at their heads. Courtesy of his amazing aim and dad’s strained relationship with them, he never met them again. Thank fucking god for that.

When Jasper met Christopher Diaz, a literal sunshine, he kid you not, it was decided right here and there that this boy is gonna be his little brother, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Don’t look at him like that, he doesn’t make rules! It’s what the universe wants, and who is young Buckley to deny it? He’s pretty sure dad has already claimed Diaz boys as their family.

Eddie is cool, too. The guy is now helping him with his chemistry homework since dad is useless in the subject. But who would have thought that a year later Jasper would be so interwoven with Diaz family that he would be jokingly calling Eddie Diaz papa? Well, here they are.

When Christopher got hurt at the school trying to ride a skateboard, Jasper had half a mind to go there and throw hands with a fucking dumbass who was supposed to watch over his brother. He would never punch anyone without a provocation, mind you, but this situation left him feeling furious.

Not to mention, Eddie for some noble reasons decided to apologize to that teacher, never mind that she hadn’t done her job properly. Whether that was Chris’ idea to ride a skateboard or not, she should have stopped them, and how in the world you miss a whole ass skateboard? And what is this with a weirdo analogy with horses? For fuck’s sake.

Ana Flores is now on his shit list, alright, along with Phillip and Margaret Buckley, may these old farts rot in a garbage disposal.

----

Maybe I'll write about Jasper Buckley again, maybe I won't, who knows. Let's see if I can come up with new ideas concerning this.

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keelywolfe · 3 years

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FIC: Just Swimmingly ch.7 (BAON)

Summary: Team Rescue is on the way...mostly. Look, they aren't good at names.

Tags: Spicyhoney, Established Relationships, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping

Part of the ‘by any other name’ series.

~~*~~

Read it on AO3

Read it here!

~~*~~

Edge had been on worse car rides, but not many. In fact, he could only think of one; riding in the backseat of his own car with Stretch unconscious in his lap, his life ticking away in decimals as Edge desperately clung to Blue’s instruction that he should think of healing magic as similar to making a hollandaise.

It wasn’t ridiculous if it worked and sitting here in this silent car, hyperfocusing on the mostly empty roads with Blue next to him radiating grim determination and Antwan in the backseat, Edge found himself thinking of hollandaise again.

The mental picture of the saucepan was strangely easing, keeping his turbulent thoughts occupied. In his memory, Blue’s voice was preternaturally calm as he reminded them that all the butter couldn’t be added at once because the mixture would break. Edge followed the direction coming from his phone as the voice assistant instructed him in its robotic way to turn left, (you need to add the butter a little at a time) turn right, (whisk it in), your destination is on the left.

It was only when he pulled into the empty parking lot as directed that the real Blue spoke, his high voice uncertain over the confidence of his imaginary twin, “Shouldn’t the security teams be here?”

“No,” Edge said disgustedly. He threw the car into park and pressed a knuckle between his eye sockets with painful force. “because this isn’t the right place.”

The dilapidated sign over the empty storefront declared with a spooky if faded cheer to be ‘Spirit Halloween’ but the only spirits in this place were the ghosts of customers’ past.

“My brother’s sense of humor,” Edge said, “he’s sending us a message. We went trick or treating behind his back and here’s his trick.”

“Of course it is,” Blue muttered, sinking back in the seat. His gloved hands were tight in his lap, a mirror to Edge’s grip on the steering wheel. “Papyrus probably warned him hours ago that I’d left home. He would have been ready for something like this.”

Edge picked up his phone, his bare thumbs moving with cautious swiftness over the screen. “Yes, he would. Which is why we’re going to follow the other tracker now.”

“Other tracker?” Antwan leaned over the driver’s seat to look at the new directions scrolling up the phone screen. His laughter was uncomfortable, more nerves than humor. “How many trackers do you have on your brother?”

Not as many as he has on me, Edge did not say. “On a normal day, only one.” Edge pulled back out onto the empty street, following the monotone drone of the GPS. “Sans set it up for me when Red pulled his little disappearing act after California and then reappeared to wreak havoc on my kitchen.”

“He did what?” Blue asked and Edge winced internally, barely keeping it from showing on his face. He wasn’t at his best, that much was certain, spilling secrets out in a spreading pool, but caring about that would have to wait. There were only so many directions he could pull his focus for now and Blue was hardly going to take out an advertisement in the paper if he heard anything he shouldn’t. A bit of gossip when it came to office relationships and the local scandals aside, Blue was one of their diplomats and he was well able to use appropriate discretion.

Hopefully, his definition of appropriate did not include asking Red any uncomfortable questions at a later date.

“It doesn’t matter. As I was saying, I usually have one tracker on my brother just in case he gets it into his head to face something he shouldn’t alone.” Edge didn’t quite roll through a red light. Better to not get pulled over by the Ebott police if he could help it, Embassy security certainly had enough on their hands right now without having to handle minor traffic violations. “Except, as I said, Sans gave it to me. Which means it’s only as accurate as Sans wants it to be and he has an unfortunate tendency to match my brother when it comes to deciding he knows what’s best for other people.”

A certain sourness fell over Blue’s expression as he nodded. As both a younger brother and a diplomat he was quite familiar with the ongoing irritation of overprotectiveness, even as he often did the same to his own brother.

“Which is why tonight I added my own tracker to Red’s jacket,” Edge said, “I would have followed that one first, but I was hoping not to reveal it so quickly if I could help it.”

Blue hummed thoughtfully. “You don’t think he’d be expecting that?”

“Of course, but I think he’d have a harder time finding and disabling it. Stretch made it for me.” The memory of his maniacal delight when Edge told him what it was for was briefly allowed, as well as his satisfied triumph when he presented Edge with a device that was the size of match head, tagged with near-microscopic hooks reminiscent of Velcro that were made to catch and cling to any fabric with a mere touch.

His design was with the Research and Development team now, minus the tracking device, as they worked to find a use for it that would allow for them to sell it to Humans, along with a dozen other things he’d created. So many of Stretch’s designs ended up that way, patents in which he was not named used as bargaining chips to help keep their coffers full. Stretch always declared that he didn’t work for the Embassy and that much was true. Instead, he worked for all of Monsterkind, that clever mind of his working to get them the funds they needed establish a place in this world. Only a handful of people even knew it and while Asgore could be foolishly soft-hearted on occasion, he wouldn’t considering paying a large ransom for any citizen on the street, even if they were married to Edge. Stretch was important past his twitter feed and it would be narrow not to suspect that these kidnappers somehow learned about it.

This time the tracker was leading them to the other side of town, down on the north side where the neighborhoods were filled with condemned houses and boarded up businesses. The only industry that thrived there were liquor shops whose windows were barred, manned by cashiers who spent their days behind a thick layer of bulletproof glass. His car was going to stand out like a sore thumb, but it couldn’t be helped. He wasn’t about to waste anymore time by stopping at the Embassy to borrow something more discreet.

At least he could worry less about reprisals from rolling through stop sign; the Ebott police presence on this side of town was minimal.

They made their way through the empty streets without incident. It was late even for the criminal element and a glance down the alleyways they passed showed them filled with shadows that could have been trash cans or curled up humans sleeping amongst them.

Some of the children from the Y lived on this side of town. Actually, most of them did and some of them might well be sleeping on the street right now…no. He couldn’t think of that at this moment, one thing at a time. He couldn’t afford to have his attention ping-ponging around inside his head, not when their destination was in sight.

This time, there were plenty of cars parked in a semi-circle around the building, floodlights pouring from their windows and flashers circling on their rooftops. Embassy security teams were made up of Monsters and Humans, and there were plenty out there in their uniforms. The Ebott police were going to throw a fit about jurisdiction, of that he had no doubt, but that was going to be a tomorrow problem for the Legal department and their FBI connections.

One of the security personnel approached the car as Edge pulled up, both hands raised in a gesture that could either mean for them stop or for him to offer surrender. Edge rolled down his window and he ducked his head inside the car. “Sir, your husband and his friend are both fine,” he said without preamble. “This area is closed off, you should—”

“If you even suggest that I should leave, you’re going to be reassigned to the elementary school playground for the foreseeable future,” Edge said evenly.

To his credit, the guard’s expression did not change. “Wouldn’t dream of it, sir. I was going to tell you to park over on the north side,” He pointed to a clearing off behind the other cars. “Your brother is waiting for you up at the entrance.”

“Of course he is,” Edge muttered. “I’m sure we’ve kept him quite entertained with his version of hide and seek.” But he obeyed the direction.

He parked a fair distance away from the circle of the security vehicles and got out of the car, Antwan and Blue at his heels. No one else approached, the rest of the security team keeping a respectable distance away out of either direction from their leaders or simple self-preservation.

Standing near the warehouse entrance and out of the glare of the floodlights was Red, burrowed into his jacket with a Styrofoam cup in his hand and a cigar smoldering between his teeth. As if warned by his instincts or, more likely, through the curling earpiece that was stuck into his audial canal, Red turned to them as they approached. His grin was irritatingly knowing and familiar, pleased as a punch to have held them off long enough that everything was finished but the cleanup.

And yet, it was also such a comfort to see that smirk that Edge nearly went weak at the knees. He wouldn’t be smiling that way if Stretch or Jeff were hurt, even his brother’s sadism had its limits.

“what took you so long, you stop for coffee?” Red snorted. He held up the Styrofoam cup. “coulda brought me some, the shit they’ve got here’d give battery acid a run for its cash.”

“Yes, of course, we got stuck in the drive-thru at Starbucks," Edge snapped. “You’ll forgive me for not bringing enough for everyone!”

Before he could even demand a report, Blue went on past him. Parking lot gravel scattered under his booted feet as he stormed up to Red and swatted the cup from his hands. He paid no mind to the coffee sloshing out over their shoes, his small fists knotting into Red’s jacket front as he hauled him in close to snarl out, “WHERE IS MY BROTHER?”

Even through layers of forced calm, Edge could still appreciate the sight. It was certainly an unusual one. Blue was shorter even than Red and he wore no oversized jacket to give his small frame an illusion of bulk. The overwhelming visual was that of a tabby cat attacking the local tiger and if it were anyone else, Edge might have tried to intercede. It was possible he could have saved their lives, if not their limbs, had it been anyone but their innermost circle.

As it was, he tensed until his brother said mildly, “easy on the threads, baby blue, this’s my favorite jacket. my only one, too. they’re still upstairs. they ain't hurt, so we're lettin' 'em come down in their own time. ain’t no need to rush ‘em. think they needed a mo’ to catch their breath, s’all."

Blue didn’t wait for another word. He let go of Red and turned to the building entrance, running towards it. No one tried to stop him, though Edge noted with approval that one of the security team peeled away from the others to follow him at a discreet distance.

Antwan looked as if he was considering chasing after Blue, but he hung back. With the suspicious nature of a good lawyer, he asked Red, "If they’re fine, why aren’t you with them?"

"sweet that you think me bein' there would be some kinda comfort," Red snorted. "already saw 'em. head on up if you want, we've already cleared away the rest of the honey bun’s little scooby traps." Red offered them a vicious slash of grin. "your liability might need a new rating, he's damn creative when he’s got a hair laid across his ass just right."

That was enough for Antwan. He headed off in the direction Blue had, leaving Edge alone with his brother.

Edge waited until Antwan disappeared before he asked, low, "Where are they?"

Red only looked at him with mild reproach. “toldja, upstairs. what, you think i’d bullshit you on that?”

“I don’t mean them.”

Red was shaking his head before Edge finished. “nuh-uh, nope, not a chance. you ain’t gettin’ a look at those asswipes outside a courtroom. you’re keeping your toes behind the yellow line on this one, sneaking backstage ain’t happening, little brother.”

“I need to see—" Edge began heatedly.

“you fuckin’ don’t. you want to see and your wants ain’t on the list, not this time!” Red lowered his voice, “i get you wanted firecrackers and this is endin’ on a wet fart for you, but i ain’t explainin’ to the honey bun that i stood here and let you add a fresh shovelful of xp to your load on his account. so whyn’t you head upstairs now and go get your liability, huh? take him home and let us handle this, you can read the report tomorrow, yeah?”

Suspicion filtered through Edge’s strained temper, cooling it. Something of his brother’s little speech rang wrong to Edge; it was too consolatory towards him for their normal tastes, something was off here. Now that he was looking at it without his frustrations clouding things, there was also the matter of him leaving Stretch and Jeff alone; comforting presence or not, it was difficult to believe that Red would let them out of his sight unnecessarily. As shrewdly as he could still manage, Edge took a closer look at his brother.

Red did not have any LV but that certainly didn’t mean he had no trauma. His tells were subtle, unnoticeable to anyone who hadn’t watched them develop straight from the gutter. Eye lights slightly narrower than normal, his cigar clenched between too-tight teeth, the rare crackle of crimson magic arcing across his fingertips like a stray bolt of lightning.

There was something Red wasn’t saying, but there was no point in trying to fish it out now; he’d need better bait and Edge already had one in the net to deal with.

Better to leave it as it was. Even if the issue festered, his brother was unlikely to allow it to affect his work. It was difficult not to lay a hand on his brother’s shoulder, however briefly. Edge resisted the absurd impulse. It would not be appreciated. Unwanted concern was more likely to make things worse.

Instead, Edge nodded curtly and headed for the entrance. His boots clacked loudly on the cement floors. Security was milling in the hallways, others crouching over scorch marks and a strange overflowing mass of what looked like multicolored foam oozing down one side of the stairwell. Superfluous information, none of it mattered. He followed the subtle cues from the security personnel, the glances and occasional points that came without questions leading him up the rickety stairs to the second floor of offices and storerooms.

On the landing, a low sound caught his attention, a familiar voice crooning softly. Edge nearly skidded to a stop outside one of the rooms, looking in the open doorway to see the Swap brothers sitting together on the floor, holding each other tightly.

“hey, bro, shh, i’m okay. they didn’t hurt us, sans, i’m fine,” Stretch was saying. Blue was in his lap, clinging like the child he no longer was, and Stretch was rubbing a gentle hand down his brother’s back, leaving behind sooty streaks. He looked up, soft white eye lights catching on Edge still standing in the doorway. His cheekbones were wet, his wide sockets drowning in tears. Stretch scrubbed his face with the sleeve of a shirt that was not his own and managed a tremulous smile. "hey, handsome, miss me?"

He’d seen Stretch only hours ago, dressed in clothing stolen from Edge’s side of the closet and offering flirtatious kisses before walking out their front door. Now he was in baggy clothing that belong to neither of them, the shirt nearly hanging off his narrow shoulders and his bare legs sticking out from the bottoms of the too-short pants to leave the delicate bones of his feet filthy and exposed. All of him was filthy, his pale tears left clean tracks down his cheekbones and Edge did not know what Stretch had done to free them both, what he’d endured until he could., couldn’t begin to imagine it. Or perhaps he simply did not want to, and the precariously thin layer of Edge’s calm finally began to crack. All his desperate worries surged in through that first line of weakness to fill his face and then downward to soak into his aching soul.

"Don't—" Edge choked on the word, unsure what he was even going to say. Don't joke, don't dismiss this, don't ever leave me. He walked over and fell to his knees beside them, hardly feeling the warning jolt from his leg as he pulled them both into his arms rougher than he'd meant. Unnecessary, Stretch came easily, willingly, settling into his embrace exactly as if he belonged there, and brought his brother along for the ride.

"hey, i'm okay," Stretch said, pitching his voice for them both. He rested his forehead against Edge’s, settling a gentle hand on his sharp cheekbone with a sigh. "we’re okay, babe. it's okay."

"It is not okay by any stretch of the imagination,” Edge said hoarsely. His own hands were moving over Stretch, cautious of his lack of gloves even as he convinced himself that this was no dream, these well-loved bones were real. “And if you make a pun on that, you can ride home with my brother."

“wouldn’t joke about it, babe.” Then Stretch promptly made it a lie as he teased, “hope i get extra credit for not stretching things out, actually, ‘cause i sure didn’t get my ‘stay out of trouble’ badge tonight.”

“Pappy,” Blue moaned. His grip in the awful shirt Stretch was wearing twisted as if his disgust needed a physical outlet, “honestly, must you?”

Edge barked a laugh, hard and pained, but in his soul there was only giddy lightness. “No, you certainly did not. I would say any claim that you didn’t find trouble would be stretching things.”

Another groan from Blue was interrupted by a scuffing sound behind them. Edge jerked around, but it was only Antwan holding Jeff in his own tight embrace, whatever whispers between them too low to be heard. Edge hadn’t even noticed them when he first came in and the faint guilt from that was too small to be borne, already swallowed up in overwhelming relief.

Safe, they were both safe and unharmed, and Edge set his anger back, holding it in reserve. No matter what his brother thought, this was not over, and he would not be relegated to the injured group to recover, not this time.

But first, he was taking his love home.

tbc

#spicyhoney #papcest #keelywolfe #underfell #underswap #underfell papyrus #underswap papyrus #by any other name

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mostlymovieswithmax · 3 years

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Movies I watched in June

Now I think I’m comfortably in a rhythm to get these posts out. For one, I’m writing up short reviews either straight after watching a movie or sometimes it might take a few days. But June was a fairly good month in terms of the amount of films I watched. I got to go to the cinema quite a bit which is always fun. Anyway, let’s get on with it! If you’re looking for something good to watch (or maybe even something bad), I hope this list can help in some way to introduce you to new and different movies that maybe you’ve never heard of, or were thinking of checking out. Here is every film I watched from the 1st to the 30th of June 2021.

Bo Burnham: Inside (2021) - 10/10 Everyone was going off about how great this film is. An hour and a half of Bo Burnham in lockdown, singing songs and being upset is definitely a powerful hook and I have to agree with the general consensus because Inside blew me away. More thoughts on this in my podcast: The Sunday Movie Marathon episode 34.

Bo Burnham: Make Happy (2016) - 7/10 After watching Inside, I figured I’d rewatch some of Burnham’s older stand-up shows on Netflix. Make Happy is a lot of fun, injected with a lot of introspection from Burnham that really makes the special stand out, despite a lot of gags that just didn’t land for me.

Bo Burnham: What. (2013) - 6/10 It’s plain to see just how much Bo Burnham has grown over the years and how he has honed his comedy and music. ‘What.’ is a good stepping stone in the comedian’s career, showcasing loads of promise in him from a young age. There are some jokes that haven’t aged as well and some that straight up dragged, but overall the show is still enjoyable.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) - 3/10 Packed theatre for this one, obviously. People love a Conjuring movie, and I’d also say people love a good scare… but this movie isn’t scary, or good for that matter. More thoughts on episode 35 of the podcast.

The Conjuring (2013) - 6/10 After the horrendously disappointing debacle that was the third Conjuring movie, I decided to watch James Wan’s original movie and man, if this wasn’t better in literally every way. I don’t tend to love James Wan movies but I can’t deny he’s got so much talent in how he makes movies and it makes The Conjuring a lot more fun to see competent filmmaking in the horror genre in a way that actually creates an eerie atmosphere with creative uses of camera-work and editing.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) - 8/10 Normally I’m not big into the old slasher movies. I appreciate that for the time, perhaps they hit differently, but now I just don’t tend to connect with them. Wes Craven’s ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ is a bit of an exception. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not particularly scary, though it does employ a lot of interesting techniques and designs. Undeniably, the design for Fred Krueger is a staple in cinema, with the striped jumper, hat, scarred face and knives for fingers not leaving the mind of the general public any time soon. Elm Street doesn’t have too many kills but when it does, it is so effective and fun to watch. Craven was one of the greats, truly.

One Cut of the Dead (2017) - 8/10 This has to be one of the most engaging zombie movies I’ve seen in a long time. There’s a lot to spoil with One Cut of The Dead but I won’t go into that here. It is clever and funny, subverting expectations in ways I really didn’t expect. I really cannot recommend it enough.

Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones (2019) - 8/10 Since we’re watching Chappelle's Show for episode 45 of the podcast, I wanted to get an idea for what I was in for, so I watched Dave Chappelle’s stand-up show from a couple of years ago. Yeah, really funny, which I suppose is what you want from a stand-up special, but what makes it better is Chappelle’s commentary on the world at large and how he’s able to combine humour with intelligent criticism.

Fear(s) of the Dark (2008) - 4/10 A few years ago I think I watched this animated black and white anthology film on a New Year's Day when I had foolishly decided to pull an all-nighter and then go out with mates for ice cream. Never again. But I’d forgotten what I thought of this movie and decided to get the DVD for cheap on eBay. Perhaps I am doomed to watch Fear(s) of the Dark only when I am tired because I popped this on when it was nearing midnight. I was lucid enough to understand what I was watching though… and it was quite boring. These short films emulate the filmmakers’ nightmares - an interesting premise in theory, but pretty weak on execution.

The Bourne Identity (2002) - 3/10 We marathoned the first three Bourne movies for The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast, episode 36 so check that out for my expanded thoughts on this, the best Bourne of the three.

The Bourne Supremacy (2004) - 2/10 Immediately after, we did the deep dive into Supremacy, the second Bourne and the worst of the three (albeit by a very slim margin). Check out episode 36 for more.

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) - 2/10 I really couldn’t care less about these terrible movies. It was a horrible chore to sit through them. Ultimatum was also rubbish. More gripes and discussion in episode 36 of the podcast.

The Father (2021) - 10/10 Another trip to the cinema for this masterpiece. I tried very hard not to sob loudly in the theatre where aside from myself, the audience totalled three people. More discussion of The Father in episode 36 the podcast.

Drag Me To Hell (2009) - 2/10 I’m pretty shocked that Sam Raimi directed this. Usually when I watch one of his films, I can see his staple of fun gore, practical effects, crazy camera movements… but there was none of that here. It just felt like a really bad horror, indistinguishable from the regular affair, with no personality or passion. Drag Me To Hell might even have been one of those movies I’d avoided in the past when I was younger because it seemed too scary but no, it was just boring and bad and I feel like there’s something I’m not getting out of this that other people seem to be.

Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - 8/10 At this point, I feel I have to admit Wes Anderson as perhaps my second favourite director. His movies are just so nice and beautiful to watch. Moonrise Kingdom is a quirky love story between two kids and honestly, with any other director, could have been handled poorly because the story is quite simple. But Anderson injects so much of his signature style and personality into the film. A powerhouse of actors with the likes of Frances McDormand, Bill Murray, Bruce Willis and Tilda Swinton, among a few of Anderson’s regulars, make Moonrise Kingdom a breeze. Good for a dark day to lift the spirits.

Nobody (2021) - 8/10 I needed something to fill an otherwise uneventful day, so I hopped on a bus and booked a ticket for Ilya Naishuller’s new action movie, Nobody. The film started and to my annoyance, the lights in the theatre were still on. When I go to the cinema I don’t really want to see the other people sitting around me, so I got up from my seat, abandoning the first two minutes of the film to find a member of staff to turn the lights off. After showing them that the lights were in fact still on, I took to my seat and watched the movie for what felt like a little while before the lights went off. Nobody is a really fun action movie. Perhaps similar in a lot of ways to John Wick, but with more personality to the main character. More thoughts on episode 37 of The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast.

The Darjeeling Limited (2007) - 8/10 After procuring the Criterion blu-ray from my local hmv, I delved into all the supplements it had to offer, including a making-of documentary, chats with the director, and a gallery of polaroid pictures from when they were shooting the film in India. The Darjeeling Limited is perhaps not peak Wes Anderson, but I do kind of love it. It makes me want to go on a journey to another country with my brother and sister, perhaps in ten to fifteen years. Here, the main characters are three brothers who travel to India seeking some kind of spiritual experience. Things don’t seem to work out that way, however, because I’m not sure how spiritual an experience you can have when you plan out an itinerary to schedule it. Fantastic performances all round and of course, beautiful direction and cinematography.

Face/Off (1997) - 3/10 Was I supposed to laugh? Maybe I was just too tired but I really couldn’t stand Face/Off. It didn’t feel particularly special and despite a couple of fun ideas, it was mostly quite boring.

Luca (2021) - 5/10 The new Pixar movie leaves a lot to be desired. The animation is really second to none and I can’t fault how beautiful the movie looks, more so when it’s set in this little Italian town than under the sea. The story is so uninspired though, with the basic premise being that the protagonists want a Vespa so they enter a competition to win the money to buy one. Also they’re fish that turn into people on dry land. Maybe that’s enough for some people, but I couldn’t shake the familiarity of Luca. It never went in any interesting directions and basically did exactly what I figured it would do. I don’t believe it’s out here to subvert expectations but I would like some creativity when it comes to the writing. Perhaps if I watched it again, I might like it less. It was pretty dull.

Punch-Drunk Love (2002) - 10/10 I’m a little disappointed with the Criterion blu-ray for Punch-Drunk love. It’s supplements host a couple of low-quality deleted scenes that were clearly deleted for a reason, and some weird artsy music videos that incorporated footage from the movie. I was quite shocked at how low-effort it all seemed. The movie itself is fantastic though and I do believe it to be Adam Sandler’s best performance (and I really liked Uncut Gems). He portrays a man who is constantly put down by his family, clearly has some kind of social disability, and on top of it all he’s getting scammed by a sex line. Amongst all this, he’s trying to navigate a new relationship and it’s so sweet to watch all the interactions between Sandler and Emily Watson. It’s a perfect melding of romance, comedy and anxiety, beautifully directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.

Fargo (1996) - 9/10 Another movie you wouldn’t expect to be so funny, especially since it’s based on this horrific true story about murder, deceit and money. But the Coen brothers know how to handle it. Excellent performances, beautiful colour palette, and a story that just gets more and more insane as it goes.

House (1977) - 7/10 House (or, Hausu) was a recommendation for episode 37 of The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast so check that out for more discussion. Generally speaking, this Japanese horror/comedy was bonkers. Insanely creative and abstract (which at points can detriment the film) with an almost Balamory-esque presentation. I was happy to find that the comedy was not lost on me at all; this is a hilarious film, albeit maybe not all the time.

The Princess Bride (1987) - 10/10 I reviewed this in my May wrap-up but this time around, I had recommended The Princess Bride for the podcast, the discussion for which you can listen to in episode 37. It all clicked this time around. It is such a fun, warm movie with a lot of laughs and superb production.

This Is Spinal Tap (1984) - 8/10 Another Rob Reiner joint, a few years before The Princess Bride. This Is Spinal Tap is lauded as a masterpiece in comedic cinema and I might agree; this movie is hilarious. Shot in mockumentary fashion, it follows a band playing shows and trying to get gigs, coupled with the inevitable screw-ups of live performance and creative disagreements. It lost me every now and again but it’s still a must-watch.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) - 6/10 A decent Disney flick but certainly not their best. One highlight includes the villain singing a lament about wanting to have sex with Esmerelda and calling her a witch for giving him a boner.

Ponyo (2008) - 4/10 Not sure if I’ve ever disliked a Miyazaki movie before but I did not vibe with Ponyo. It came across as very baby and as such, there really wasn’t much to read into. The animation is fantastic as always but so much of it felt specifically tailored to a younger crowd.

Roman Holiday (1953) - 9/10 Classic romance at its best. I had heard on a podcast that this was the sexiest movie the guest had ever seen and while maybe not in the traditional sense of the word, I do get where they’re coming from. I was tearing up with just how lovely it all was, following a princess who runs away and spends the day with a man she meets in Rome (where it was shot on location), doing all the things she’s wanted to do but never could because of royal responsibilities. Fantastic performances from Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck who sell the chemistry of the characters so well.

F9 (2021) - 2/10 I’ve never seen any of the Fast & Furious movies and after watching the ninth in the series, I don’t want to. This is basically the Vin Diesel show; we watch him drive cars fast and punch people a lot. Wow! I don’t really understand what it (and forgive the pun) driving people to see these movies if they’re all in this same vein. As far as I can tell, F9 is the goofiest of the series so far and I’ll admit I had a chuckle or two at some of the truly implausible moments, such as a part where one of the team gets shot by about ten men with machine guns, yet manages to kill them all without being affected by the bullets… but overall, in this two-and-a-half-hour experience, I was largely bored.

Shaolin Soccer (2001) - 7/10 I love this movie! Shaolin Soccer is so much fun; it is goofy and out there and completely crazy, all by design. Steven Chow knew what he was making when he set out to craft this insane story of a group of guys using Kung-Fu to play football. The basic story itself is nothing new but it’s elevated by the infectious comedy and implausibility of what’s happening. Balls are kicked into space and across fields so fast the very ground is torn asunder. A man eats an egg off a dirty shoe. This is cinema.

Casino Royale (2006) - 7/10 I had seen a trailer at the cinema for the new Bond movie and I have to say, I’ve never really given 007 the time of day, aside from a few of the very first movies I’d tried watching a while ago. But the new trailer kind of got me hyped, so I wanted to watch all of the Craig era Bond movies, starting with Casino Royale. I had a great time! Even though there’s not loads of fighting or weapons or fast cars, the meat of the movie actually comes from this poker game Bond is playing against the villain, played brilliantly by Mads Mikkelsen. I was surprised to witness a bit of cock-and-ball torture in this 12-rated movie but I would be lying if I said it didn’t stick with me.

Quantum of Solace (2008) - 5/10 Immediately after Casino Royale, I jumped into the second of Daniel Craig’s Bond movies, Quantum of Solace. Sadly it’s quite weak, with not much going on aside from the general Bond fare. Mathieu Amalric’s villain lacked a lot of menace or motivation and generally, I’m not super worried about a brilliant story in a Bond movie, but even the action felt weak in this. Quantum of Solace didn’t exactly upset me but it failed to wow me in any way either. The saving grace of the movie is certainly Daniel Craig as the hero, capturing Bond and what he’s supposed to be.

Skyfall (2012) - 6/10 A marked improvement from its predecessor, Sam Mendes helms Skyfall, Craig’s third outing as Bond. Skyfall delves into Bond’s past as he seems to be slipping a bit, not as much the expert operative he once was. It would have been nice to see more of his fall from grace, as they don’t really show us how he’s become less efficient as much as they give other characters expository dialogue telling us how he drinks and does drugs and is haunted by childhood trauma. For me, that’s where the meat of the story lies and I would have preferred more of a character piece if indeed they were delving into that side of the character anyway. That being said, the fights are still better choreographed than the last instalment and the colour grading and scenery is often very visually interesting. Everything in Skyfall is better than its predecessor and it’s surely thanks to Sam Mendes who does a great job at directing.

Howl's Moving Castle (2004) - 8/10 Another go round for Howl's Moving Castle, as this was a recommendation for my podcast, The Sunday Movie Marathon. My opinion, I feel, is unchanged. It's a fantastic film, and you can listen to more of what I have to say in episode 37. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 - 3/10 A pretty poor end to a poor series of movies. I'm surprised I've watched the Twilight movies as many times as I have but I also know I'll watch them again. Part 2 I watched with the YMS commentary track on YouTube which, again made the experience a lot better. But otherwise the series seemed to get better as it went along… until the last movie. Ultimately my biggest problem with it is that nothing actually happens and the plot feels like a late addition rather than a natural progression of the story. It’s basically a whole movie of set-up to a payoff that doesn’t even canonically happen. A big thing with YA adaptations in this era was making a final book into two movies, regardless as to whether it needed that much time or not. Breaking Dawn does not need to be two movies at two hours each. About ten new characters are introduced here and the film is afraid of killing even one of them off. It's the last movie! We're not going to see these characters again! Kill some of them! There's just no emotional weight to any of it and I hate to say I was disappointed with the ending because I have such low expectations for these films but man, this was so unsatisfying.

Frances Ha (2012) - 8/10 Life is hard. And I hate this movie because it shows me so much of what terrifies me about being alive. And I love this movie because it shows me so much of what I’m alive for. Noah Baumbach’s brutally honest depiction of growing up and fending for yourself struck me in a way I wasn’t expecting and I think it’s because I’m at a point in my life where I’m worrying a lot about how it’s all going to turn out. The titular character is burdened with the stress of working low-paid jobs and paying rent while juggling school and making time for her passion of dancing as she tries to connect with people she’s lost, as temporary friends and housemates come and go. She feels like a lonely character despite often being around a lot of people. Frances Ha is fantastic and heartbreaking and uplifting… but it made me feel bad so I hate it.

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gojifan97 · 4 years

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Dads For Deku-Family Bonding

“Alright Izuku, are you ready to come out?” said Gentle, knocking on Izuku’s door. La Brava was standing a little behind Gentle, staring expectedly at the door.

“Y-yeah! I’m ready!”

“Excellent, then show us what the newest member of our show will look like!” said Gentle, dramatically flourishing his arms. After all a showman must always be practicing, he never knew when the camera would turn on.

“Behold…” Izuku said. The door slammed open and Izuku leapt out, “KILLER RABBIT!” He landed on the floor and struck what seemed intended to be an intimidating pose. Seemed to being the operative term.

This wasn’t helped by his costume. It looked like a giant bunny costume. It consisted of a black jumpsuit, with elbow and knee pads, a dark green waistcoat with gray geometric highlights (how did he even get that?), a utility belt partially hidden by the coat, white gardener’s gloves, his red sneakers (throwing off the color scheme), a dark mouthpiece with a fanged grin painted on the front, and a cowl that covered his head topped by massive bunny ears. All in all, he looked ridiculous.

Gentle struggled to hold in his laughter. Beside him, he saw La Brava doing the same. He began to frantically fake-cough to get it out of his system.

“Gentle are you alright?” Izuku asked running up to him. The failed attempt at being intimidating now replaced with his regular sweet and harmless demeanor.

“Yes, yes. Just had something in my throat,” Gentle said. An idea began to form.

“Oh good. You were just coughing so hard, and it sounded so weird…”

“Hey, Izuku,” said La Brava, shuffling awkwardly, “About your name…”

“Huh? Is it bad?” Izuku said, his eyes looking like a sad puppy under his mask. La Brava stumbled slightly, so Gentle took this opportunity to jump in.

“Not at all! However I think you should drop the “Killer” part from your name. It creates a negative image for our viewers!” he said. La Brava sent him a confused look.

“Oh ok, that makes sense,” said Izuku. “Then I shall be Rabbit! And while they may have once underestimated me, seen me as something weak and helpless, the evils of this world will soon learn I am a threat to all those who harm the innocents!”

“Oh, so that’s why you went with that motif. That makes sense,” La Brava said. But when Izuku looked away she still eyed his costume skeptically.

“Now, I believe we have other things to do now. The sun is down, it is time.”

“Wait now? Tonight?! I thought I was just trying on my costume today!”

“Not to worry Izuku, you said you’ve been training in that on your own right?” said Gentle.

“…Yeah…”

“You have me and La Brava to handle the lion’s share of the work and protect you if needed right?”

“Yeah.”

“And you need to start eventually right?”

“Yeah! Ok. I’m ready to have my first outing tonight!”

“That’s the spirit!” said Gentle, who began walking to grab his disguise.

“Come on! La Brava said to Izuku as she went for her own. “You’ll do great!”

The three ran across the rooftops. Whenever they came to the edge of one, Gentle would take the lead and use his quirk to make the edge of the roof a trampoline for them. They stopped on the edge of a roof overlooking a street in a more run-down neighborhood. Gentle looked and listened for any sign of wrongdoing. He heard the sound of crying. He looked and saw a little girl sobbing in front of a tree, her cat near the top loudly meowing, stuck.

“Follow me!” He said, leaping down. After a few light bounces he and La Brava were securely on the ground. Izuku stood on the edge, staring down.

“Come on Izuku! You can do it!” said Gentle.

“We made it! Gentle made the ground soft!” said La Brava.

Izuku snapped to look at them as if he’d forgotten about them.

“Trust me,” Gentle said, “You’ll be fi-“

Izuku raised his hand in a “wait” gesture, then began scrambling down the building, using any handholds available and even dropping himself once or twice, using the parkour skills he’d shown Gentle so happily last week. Gentle felt proud. Until Izuku slipped and fell onto an awning. He rolled down and Gentle softened the ground just before Izuku landed into a roll. That did not terrify Gentle at all. Only slightly concern him.

“S-sorry, I guess I have to work on that a little more…” Izuku said. “I wanted to try getting down myself so if you’re ever not there I’ll be able to do it on my own…”

Gentle smiled, “Excellent forward thinking. And don’t be afraid to try again. As long as I’m here I’ll be ready to help catch you.”

“I am too! Even if I’m not strong. I will even use my quirk to help you if needed.” La Brava said. Love of surrogate little brothers was still love after all.

Izuku began tearing up, “Thank-OH MY GOSH THE CIVILIAN!” He leapt to his feet and began racing to the little girl with the cat in the tree. La Brava got out the camera.

Gentle tried to introduce himself, but he didn’t even make it past “I AM” before Izuku was kneeling next to the girl.

“Hi there, I’m Rabbit. Do you need some help?” said Izuku.

The girl stopped crying, turned to Izuku, and pointed, “My kitty Cupcake is in that tree and can’t get down. Are you a hero? Can you help him down? Be careful, he scratches.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get him right down!” said Izuku. He quickly climbed the tree until he made it to the wailing cat. He carefully lifted the cat into his shoulders and climbed down. “There you go!” he said, “The cat wasn’t any trouble after all.”

“Oh good! I guess he was too scared by being up in the tree!” said the girl. Izuku smiled, until her words seemed to sink in. The rest of them picked up on it too, just as the cat began growling.

After Izuku escaped that ferocious little cretin, the girl gave him a hug, calling him her hero, thanked the rest of them. She picked up her pet monster and walked inside. The three of them ran off to their next adventure.

“I didn’t get any footage of you Gentle, but I got plenty of Izuku. It makes for a great debut!”

“Excellent work La Brava!”

“I’ve got a question though,” she glanced at Izuku, who was running ahead and upwind of them, then she continued in a tone too low for him to hear, “Why’d you let him keep that ridiculous name and costume anyway? It doesn’t even match our theme!”

“Well La Brava, that’s because I realized Izuku has a different appeal. His attempts at intimidation are so horrendous to regular people that they will endear them to him. That, his soft demeanor, and how obviously bad he is at looking “cool” will make them all love him causing our videos to, what were your words, ‘go viral for sheer dorky adorable?’”

“I guess. He will have cuteness appeal with a lot of viewers, especially younger ones” she said, “but why not tell him?”

Gentle smirked. “Because he’d never believe me. So, I’ll let his unexpected popularity be a pleasant surprise.”

They soon came across a group of muggers harassing a trio of teenagers.

“Greetings! I am the GENTLE VIGILANTE, here to make my vigilante debut!” said Gentle.

“I am his faithful butler and partner in ending your ungentlemanly behavior, La Brava!”

“And I am here to protect the innocent, underestimate me at your own risk, for I am Rabbit!”

The last one caused the criminals to break into a fit of laughter. It lasted until Rabbit punched one in the face.

After a brief fight the muggers were all subdued. Izuku seemed to be gleeful about defeating two of them quirkless, Gentle was happy to have tried out Izuku’s suggestion of carrying and rubberfying a rapier (quite good for slapping those hooligans), while La Brava struggled working the camera.

“It won’t turn on!” she said, pushing the button for the fifth time.

“That leader guy said that his quirk disables all communication and recording devices that get too close and keeps them that way for twelve hours,” said one of the teens.

“W-what?” she said, looking like she’d just been told Christmas was cancelled.

“Yeah, sorry. My phone got the same. Hope I don’t lose anything already on there.”

“But that means…” she groaned, “never mind. You guys ok?”

“Yeah! Did they hurt you? Or take anything? You know, before we showed up?” said Izuku.

“Aside from some incredibly crass comments? No.” said one of the teenagers.

“Ungentlemanly filth,” said Gentle, “No matter. You all run along, find help, and call the police. Tell them where to find these ruffians. In the meantime my associates and I will be off.” He, La Brava, and Izuku bounced away.

“That was, a fine experience. Worthy of some fine tea,” said Gentle.

“Yeah, even though we won’t have any footage aside from maybe Izuku helping the girl. Still, it was nice to do all that,” La Brava said.

“I got to be a hero. I got to save people,” Izuku said, taking off his hood and mouthpiece, “I know I’ve said it before but, thank you for taking me in Gentle. You’ve given me so much I never thought I could have.” His eyes glistened with tears.

“You’ve repaid it in full with all you’ve given us Rabbit, from your smarts and strategies, to your moral compass that lead us to becoming the vigilantes we are today. It is an honor to have you with us,” said Gentle.

“He’s right you know. You’ve helped us as much as we’ve helped you,” said La Brava.

They shared a group hug. They eventually broke off and La Brava said “With the camera shot, what are we gonna-“

They heard another scream. Izuku was already running toward it. As they neared the alley they heard it from, La Brava said to Gentle, “About your plan. With Izuku?”

“Yes?”

Izuku got into the alley just ahead of them and shouted, “Stop dirtbags! I am the terror that hops in the night! RABBIT!”

She smirked, “It’s totally gonna work.”

#dadsfordeku #izuku midoriya #gentle criminal #la brava #my hero academia #vigilantes #izuku is a dork #humor #written and posted in less than a day

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benedictsvestcollection · 4 years

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Be With Me- Modern Din/OC fic (AO3)

Chapter One: You can't keep the ground from shaking, no matter how hard you try.

Din Djaren was a bounty hunter. He worked from the road mostly. Had a camper van and a motorbike attached to the back of said van. His van had a bed, a small kitchenette and more recently… A very special and gifted child.

The child wasn’t supposed to be kept. He was actually supposed to be delivered to a company that wanted to use him. And once Din realized that, his conscience got the better of him and basically flipped the bird to the CEO, Moff Gideon and kept the child with him. The child was a foundling, an orphan… Much like he was when he was young.

He noticed rather quickly that the boy was special. That he had some sort of telekinesis powers. Which sounded like something out of a science fiction novel and he would have snorted at it and called someone a goddamn idiot. But he’d now seen what this kid was capable of. At only three years old, he was special. But he also seemed to have some kind of a disability, but he had no idea how to deal with it. So he cared for the boy as best as he could. He had the kid with him for about nine months now. Traveling the country, doing jobs and enjoying the peace (mostly) that came from the road.

Currently, they were in Washington State. A man had contacted his boss, Greef Karga… Hiring a bounty hunter for a private gig. To find a woman, Aurora Daniels and bring her back to him. He’d told them that she was his girlfriend and was worried that she had been taken. That was about a week ago. A quick look into her social media said she’d gone dark. The woman knew how to disappear, Din had to hand it to her.

But he’d found her in a small-ish town in North Washington State. Din was parked in a parking lot where the woman had been shopping in a Walmart. He watched as she came out, always looking around. She was nervous. Why?

He looked at the kid and handed him his favorite coloring book. “Stay here, okay?” He asked him. The kid smiled at him and nodded, not speaking as usual. He started coloring and Din slowly got out of the van. Careful to look like he was just heading into the store, and not there for her.

She was dressed in a sundress and low heeled ankle boots. She had a backpack, a medium sized duffel, and a few shopping bags of food and other essentials. Telling Din she was most definitely on the run from something or someone.

Finally, when he was close enough to her. He gently took her by the wrist and pulled her against an SUV. “Don’t scream. I’m here to help you. Your boyfriend has been worried about you.” He told her softly, in a hushed tone.

Aurora’s bright blue eyes widened when she was pulled away and met with brown eyes. They flashed when the man mentioned her ex. What a fucking joke, he was worried about her? “Oh yeah? I’m sure he’s very worried where his punching bag went.” She snapped at the stranger and wretched her arm out of his grasp.

She ran her hand through her brown hair, giving Din a look at old bruising on her arm. It was about a week old. Right around the time the boyfriend had called Greef. Din’s jaw clenched at the idea of a woman being beaten. “He do that to you?” He asked her quietly.

Aurora met his gaze again. “That’s just the tip of the iceberg, what he’s done to me.” She told him softly. She paused, wondering how much to tell this stranger about her ex. Finally, she gave in. “Time before this, he beat me so bad I was in the hospital for a week. Broken leg, busted nose and a couple of bruised ribs. But… His dad is a cop and they hid what he did.” She told him softly, whispering in case others heard her. “But they couldn’t hide my hospital record from the stay.”

“Jesus.” Din muttered, he made a mental note to call Greef and ask him to look into this asshole. Greef had connections all over the country with cops and might be able to look into it. “I’m sorry… The client… Your ex, he didn’t tell us much. Just said he was worried about you.” He tried to meet her gaze, to show her he didn’t mean her any harm. “Okay? And….” Fuck, for the second time in less than a year… Din was about to not deliver to a client. Because fuck that asshole. “Look… I’ve got to check on something… Please, come with me while I call my boss about this? You’ll be safe with me. I promise.”

Understandably so, Aurora was skittish. But honestly, knowing her ex was looking for her was fucking terrifying and for whatever reason… She trusted this man before her. Despite not even knowing his name. “I…” She suddenly slumped against the car behind her in exhaustion. “Okay.” She agreed.

Din gently took her elbow and guided her to his big silver camper van. Aurora was surprised to see a young boy in the passenger seat. Contentedly coloring away in his superhero book. “I uh… He’s a bit shy but he’s sweet.” Din told her as he opened the side of the van. Revealing the bed and kitchenette area in the back. He took his phone out of his back pocket and called Greef.

Aurora set her things on the ground of the van and sat down delicately on the edge of the bed. Not sure what to do or say. The boy turned in his seat and smiled at her, he still didn’t speak but he crawled out of his seat. Coloring book and box of crayons in his arms and he made his way to Aurora. She watched fondly as the boy helped himself up onto the bed where she sat and showed her his coloring jobs proudly.

“Wow, these are great.” She told him with a smile, studying the boy she wondered how old he was. He couldn’t have been more than three.

He squealed in excitement at her compliment, which caused Din to turn while on the phone with Greef. He smiled at seeing the boy interact with someone else.

“Din. Looks like this client is an asshole. Not only does he have a history of violence. But, it looks like the FBI is investigating him for drug running.” Greef told him on the other end of the phone. “Now your young lady on the other hand? Not even a parking ticket as far as I can find. Pays her taxes, parents are deceased and one sibling that lives in some kind of a group home. The only records I can find on her are hospital records, most likely from her man.” Greef snorted, Din could tell he was disgusted as well.

Din kept his eyes trained on the kid and Aurora. She was showing him how to stay inside the lines of his pictures and he was fascinated watching her with the kid.

“Tell the client I couldn’t find her. Give him a refund for all I care. I’m not letting him near her if I can help it.” Din growled lowly through the phone.

“What are you gonna do? Bring someone else on the road with you?” Greef asked him in disbelief. Din was notorious for being a loner. He was still having a hard time believing he kept the kid.

“If she wants. Yeah. The kid seems to like her, maybe she’d be willing to watch him for me in exchange for protection and a bed.” With that, he hung up the phone and strode back over to the opened side of the van. He cleared his throat quietly and the boy looked up at Din and beamed. He squealed and without warning, jumped into his arms. Throwing his arms around his neck. “Hey kid.” He told him softly as he held him close and looked at Aurora. “I’m Din by the way.” He told her.

“Nice to meet you Din.” She told him softly and then considered her next words. “Is he… Autistic? I-I only ask because my younger brother is and well… He reminds me of my brother in that way.” She explained gently.

Din was surprised, but her sibling living in a group home made sense now especially if she couldn’t care for him as an adult. “I-... I don’t know.” He admitted. “He was… I was supposed to deliver him to a client but…” He trailed off, almost ashamed that he was going to turn the kid over at all.

“Oh… Well, he’s very sweet.” She told him and simply stared at both of them as the boy fell asleep on Din’s shoulder.

“He is.” He agreed with a nod. Wondering how to broach the subject. “Look… My boss, he looked into your ex. He seems like a dangerous asshole. I told him to tell him that I didn’t find you.”

She stared at him, wide eyed that he’d done that for her. “Thank you.” She whispered at him.

“You’re welcome.” He paused. “I don’t… I don’t feel right leaving you alone. He’s just gonna send someone else after me, to find you.” He said gently. “I thought maybe… That is if you’d like… You could stay with us on the road. Could use some help with the kid while I take other bounty jobs. You seem… With your brother, you might be able to help him.”

Aurora was speechless. He was offering her, what… A job?

“You’d have a bed to sleep in and I’d keep you safe from anyone. Plus, I’ll pay you for watching the kid.” He explained hesitantly.

“I-...” She thought about it for a moment. He had a point, she knew her ex well enough to know he’d just keep coming for her. And Din looked like he would know how to protect her should anyone else come after her. “Yes. I’ll come.” She finally finished her thought with a nod.

“Yeah?” He sighed in relief as he climbed into the back of the van and gently laid the kid down in the bed so he could nap. “You can uh… Sit up front if you want. He’ll be out for awhile anyway.” He explained.

She put her few groceries away in a cabinet and grabbed her backpack before crawling into the passenger seat and buckling up. Soon, they were on the road and rode in a comfortable silence.

“Does he have a name?” She asked him suddenly, drawing Din out of his own head.

He was almost surprised because he hadn’t had anyone to actually talk with in a while. “I don’t know.” He admitted. “They didn’t give me a name when I was assigned to... “

“Oh…. And how long has he been with you?” She asked him curiously, blue eyes searching him as they talked.

Damn, her eyes were distractingly beautiful. Big and wide and the bluest he’d ever seen. “About nine months.”

“You’ve had this boy for nine months, raising him as your own and you haven’t given him a name?” She asked him, unable to hide her shock.

Din sighed. “Yes.” He struggled with his next words. “I didn’t want to… Name him and get attached. In case I find his family.” His voice faltered a little at the last part.

“Oh I see.” She told him, if she heard his voice break she didn’t say anything. “Well, I’m happy to help with him. Is there… Anything else I need to know about him?”

“He’s… Special. Has special abilities, I mean.” He told her. “I know that sounds batshit crazy but… It’s true. Seen them myself.”

“What? What kind of abilities?” She asked him in shock.

“He can move things with his mind. A company was wanting him for themselves. To study him. Turn him into some kind of a lab rat.” He shook his head in disgust. “I couldn’t… Could do that to him. He’s just a kid.” His hands were gripping the wheel of the van so tightly, his knuckles were turning white.

Her gentle hand found his forearm. “You did the right thing. Kids deserve to be kids. Sometimes… They don’t have a choice but to grow up too fast but you stopped that from happening to him.” She whispered to him.

Din wondered if she was speaking from experience about growing up too fast. But he didn’t press it. “Yeah… You’re probably right.”

“Plus he obviously adores you so…” She teased him before she went back to staring at her phone in her hands. She still had it off but she was debating on just throwing it out the window. She didn’t want her ex to find her.

Din noticed her and after several more minutes of silence he spoke. “I can get you another phone if you want. That way I can call you as needed and he won’t find you. Plus, you can keep in touch with my boss if you need another contact to help.” He told her, eyes never leaving the road.

“I-... You don’t have to do that.” She told him with a shake of her head.

“Yes I do. I’ll need to keep in touch with you if I’m gone on a bounty and this way your ex can’t track you.” He shrugged as if it were obvious.

“I can’t afford a new phone.” She told him softly, obviously embarrassed.

“I can. We’ll get you that and a new number. We’ll go through Seattle tonight. Get a room for the night. I could use a shower and the kid needs a bath. Then, in the morning we’ll get you a new phone.”

“If you’re sure…” She told him hesitantly, not wanting to be a burden.

“I’m sure. I told you I’d keep you safe and I intend to do just that.” He promised her gently.

“I-... Thank you Din.” She told him and smiled at him.

“You’re welcome… Aurora.” He tested out her first name and found that he liked it on his tongue. Almost sounded like a dream to him. And maybe she was. But he realized if she was, he didn’t want to wake up if it was.

#my writing #The Mandalorian #AU #Din Djaren #Din Djaren x OC #Pedro Pascal #yo I did a thing ya'll #love me #also I posted the chapter here under the cut and a link to my AO3

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creampuffqueen · 4 years

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Chaol x Yrene baby headcanons!

Alrighty, since I want to bring some more ToG onto this blog, I’m uploading all my baby headcanons onto Tumblr from Ao3.

Chaol x Yrene

I'm doing them first because they obviously are going to have a baby first. Here we go!

-We already have seen how Yrene is in her first trimester in KoA, so that's a given. Her second trimester is gold, she feels wonderful, has the whole pregnancy glow, the whole shebang. She is so beautiful while she's pregnant, Chaol can't help but comment on her beauty like every single day.

-Of course, he cares a lot more about the beauty of her heart and soul, but to a pregnant lady, the outward appearance is usually what matters to them.

-She's five months along when she feels the baby kicking.

-She'd been helping Anielle rebuild by training young women (and a few men) healing techniques. A few even turned out to have magic! But she was training with the recruits when she felt the little kicks. Like a little butterfly trapped inside her belly.

-She abandoned her post, which she knew Hafiza would have scolded her for, and ran to find her husband. He was able to do a lot of the heavy lifting since it was early in the day and her magic was in full supply.

-Chaol stopped what he was doing and ran to her; he thought something was wrong.

-But those were tears of happiness on her cheeks as she gestured frantically for him to put his hands on her stomach.

-When Chaol felt the baby kicking, he started crying too.

-He and his wife stood there for a while just feeling their baby kick and punch and dance around in there.

-Eventually they both had to go back to work, but later that night they stayed up and held hands on Yrene's belly so they could feel their child.

-Yrene's third trimester is when things go south.

-Because of terrible hip and joint pain, she is prescribed bedrest, which she is not happy about. She has work to do! She's the lady of Anielle, for gods' sake! But she's willing to sit in bed when the healer mentions that moving too much may put the baby in danger.

-Chaol is the most doting father-to-be. If he could, he would skip rebuilding just to take care of his wife. Alas, he can't, since he has to finish their home before the baby is born.

-Chaol's mother and brother arrive earlier than expected, since his mother decided she couldn't wait any longer to see her son and her new daughter-in-law. His mother is wonderful, she sits with Yrene all day and keeps her entertained.

-Dorian visits quite a lot as well, and he adores Yrene. He helps out a lot, despite the fact everyone expects him to sit back because he's the king. Instead, he helps Chaol with the house, and he spends time with Yrene. Chaol's mother teaches him to knit, and Dorian spends about two weeks painstakingly making a baby blanket, making sure every loop is perfect.

-Yrene goes into labor early. Chaol is terrified, and Yrene is too, but refuses to let it show. She keeps telling herself that she'll be fine; she's delivered so many babies that were born early, and nearly every single one of them has been perfectly fine.

-Yrene's labor is long and hard, and she thinks she won't have enough strength to actually give birth. Chaol holds her hand the whole time and keeps telling her that she's amazing, and she can do this.

-With a final push, the baby is born, screaming loud enough to wake the whole city. Chaol's mother is there, and she was already crying, but then she's crying some more. The healer cleans the baby up a bit, wraps it in a blanket, and hands it to its parents.

-"It's a girl" the healer beams. Chaol starts sobbing. He can't believe that he has a daughter, as well as an already amazing wife. Everyone leaves the room to give them some alone time.

-They decide to name the baby girl Amelie Josefin Towers Westfall. Chaol insists that his daughter have the Towers name. He doesn't want the healer's line to disappear just because Yrene married.

-The baby girl looks so much like Yrene. She has brown skin, curly golden-brown hair, and a face absolutely covered in freckles. Her eyes, however, are the same warm amber of her father.

-Once Yrene has recovered enough to take visitors, they let Dorian in to hold his niece. It is then that he gives them a red-and-gold baby blanket, that he made himself. The colors of Adarlan, her home.

-After Dorian leaves, Chaol's mother and his younger brother come in. His mother is all over her new granddaughter, though Terrin hangs back a bit. He's a little scared of holding her; he's never held a baby before. But Chaol gently places his daughter in his brother's arms and all is well.

-Last but not least, Chaol lets his father in. He sure as hell didn't want to, neither did Yrene, but the man did have a right to see his grandchild.

-His first comment is about how they didn't produce a son. He insists that a girl cannot inherit Anielle. Yrene is having none of it and dismisses him, not even letting him hold Amelie. Chaol says he will never forget the look on his father's face as Yrene dismissed him from the room.

-Amelie is a very good baby, but she does cry a lot. Like, a lot. Yrene and Chaol are running on no sleep whatsoever for the first six months of their daughter's life.

-It's when she starts to crawl that they notice something is off. She can crawl very fast, and whenever she's crawling and they call her back, she won't come. They think she's just being stubborn, but one day Chaol calls her, without looking at her, and she doesn't come. Normally when he's facing her and speaking she'll come to him. He's worried, and Yrene performs a hearing test on their daughter that night.

-She sneaks behind Amelie while she's playing and claps her hands. No reaction. She shouts. Nothing. Yrene starts to cry. Her baby girl is deaf.

-Chaol and Yrene don't know what to do. How can they communicate and teach their daughter if she can't hear them? How can she one day take over as Lady if she can't hear her own people?

-As she gets older, Chaol and Yrene do their best. They are able to teach her to read by showing her basic words and pointing to them until she understands. But it's slow going.

-It's when Amelie is a year and a half old that Yrene discovers she's pregnant again. She is terrified; what if this baby is deaf as well? She loves her daughter so much, and she knows that her disability doesn't define her, but she wants the best for her children and she isn't sure how to provide it.

-Her second pregnancy is easier that the first. In her third trimester she again has hip and joint pain, but not as bad as the last time. She puts herself on bedrest anyway, despite her midwife saying it wasn't necessary.

-She goes to full term this time, which she is happy about. Chaol is as doting as ever, and he teaches their daughter new words about babies and makes her understand that she's going to be a big sister. Amelie doesn't speak, but the noises she makes show enough that she's super excited.

-Yrene's second labor is again, better than the first. She delivers the baby in about six hours, compared to Amelie's thirteen.

-It's a baby boy. Both parents are over the moon about their second child. Amelie is pumped to be a big sister, and Yrene even lets her hold her brother.

-They name him Rygan Dorian Towers Westfall. When Dorian hears about the child's middle name he breaks down and sobs in front of everyone. He was already over all the time, but after Rygan is born, he pretty much lives in Anielle.

-Rygan again looks like his mother, he even has her burnt gold eyes. He's an adorable baby, and Amelie constantly points to him and then a flower, her way of saying that her baby brother is beautiful.

-When Amelie turns three, it becomes apparent that she has the Towers gift of healing. She's learned to read, which her parents consider a miracle, so they are able to teach her through writing. She alternates between regular lessons with a tutor and magic lessons with her mother.

-When Rygan is one, he starts to talk. So it is also apparent that he is not like his sister. As he gets older he and his sister learn to communicate through signs with their hands, a complicated language that nobody but them understands. He becomes and avid translater for his big sister.

-When Amelie is four and Rygan is two, Yrene becomes pregnant again. This time she's so excited, instead of nervous.

-Both of her children are over the moon to be getting a younger sibling. Their excitement, along with her husband's make Yrene's heart warm every time she thinks about it.

-This pregnancy is even easier , if that's possible. Yrene goes into labor about a week before she's due and has a baby in her arms four hours later. It's another girl.

-They name this baby Giselle Hafiza Towers Westfall. He has curly hair, like her mother, but it's the color of her father's hair. She has tan skin, freckles, and burnt gold eyes.

-Giselle is a troublemaker. Even as a little baby she gets into more trouble than her parents would have thought possible. She takes all of the yarn from her grandmother's sewing basket and drags it all through the house; by the time they find her all the yarn is strewn everywhere. EVERYWHERE . She sneaks into the kitchen and knocks and entire cake to the floor. She eats so much that she's sick for two days. Every time Yrene feeds her, she stuffs all her food into her cheeks like a chipmunk and then spits it back out when her mother is least expecting it. She only does this to Yrene.

-Rygan does not have the healing power. He is so devastated about it, because he just wants to be a healer like his mother and older sister. The blow is worsened when Giselle discovers magic as well.

-Chaol does his best to keep his son's mind off of it, so he starts to train him. But Rygan is hopeless at it. Swordplay, archery, all of it. It gets to the point where Chaol just tells his son, "you don't have to be good at it, but you need to know how to do it to defend yourself." Chaol always wants his children to be the best at everything, but sometimes they just aren't.

-Yrene and Chaol decide together that their eldest needs to be trained as well. But it's hard, especially when they realize just how easily she can be snuck up on. Amelie is better at swordplay than her brother, but it's hard to train a deaf girl when she needs everything written down for her.

-Giselle gets trained as well, since they want all their children to know how to defend themselves. She's a natural, and she uses her skills to make her mark, since she is often being overlooked for her sister and brother.

-Chaol's father is not happy. The heir to his city is deaf, and worse, a girl. He keeps trying to get his son to make Rygan the heir, but Chaol is having none of it. Chaol tells his father that if he doesn't like how things are done, then he can leave. He makes a big show about leaving, but ends up not. He's a coward.

-Despite the fact that Giselle's powers make her one of the best healers at the Northern Torre, she doesn't like the path she's on. She wants to be a warrior. When she is fifteen, she runs away in the summer to Rifthold, to beg her Uncle Dorian to let her be a part of the royal guard.

-When Chaol and Yrene discover their daughter is missing, they are frantic. They search the whole city, to no avail. They are terrified that she's been kidnapped, despite the fact that peace has reigned for nearly nineteen years.

-In Rifthold, when Dorian's honorary niece shows up, he's ecstatic at first. He thinks she's been sent by her father. But when the truth comes out, he sends a messanger on the back of a wyvern.

-Chaol and Yrene are upset at what their daughter has done, but she's safe and well cared for, and that's all that matters. Yrene is sad that she didn't see her daughter's dislike of healing, and tells Dorian to accept her into the city guard, at least.

-Dorian allows Giselle to train with the royal guard, and over the years, she builds up reputation as well as rank. By the time she's seventeen, she's in the running for Captain of the Guard.

-When Rygan is a teenager, and is starting to explore himself, he realizes something. He does not like women. At all. Rygan is gay as hell. He's so scared of telling his parents, but when he does, he feels a massive weight lifted from his chest. Of course his parents accept him for who he is.

-Rygan tells his sisters, who both hug him and tell him that he could be attracted to a swamp monster from Eyllwe and they'd still love him.

-His grandfather, though...

-He takes back everything he says about Rygan being heir. He yells at his son, asking how he could let his child do this to himself, and insisting that Yrene heal him.

-He is sent packing, and is gone the next day. The Lord and Lady of Anielle do not take kindly to their children being insulted.

-Even though Rygan has no healing powers, he becomes one of the best healers in the Northern Torre. He loves his job, helping people.

-When she's twenty years old, Amelie starts to be trained for the position she will eventually inherit. Lady of Anielle. She's nervous, worried that the people won't want a deaf Lady. But she forgets, they've all known her since she was little, and her people adore her. She'll have nothing to worry about. Nothing at all.

-The story Worlds of Fire and Darkness takes place when Amelie is 21, Rygan is 19, and Giselle is 17

#throne of glass #tog #sarah j maas #tog gen 2 #throne of glass gen 2 #chaorene #chaol x yrene #chaol westfall #yrene towers

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justfinishedreading · 4 years

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The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

SPOILERS.

Written in 1915, this a novella about a middle-class salesman who one day turns into a giant beetle-like creature. But it is much more than that. Much like fairy tales and horror stories, The Metamorphosis takes the absurd and fantastical and uses it to illustrate the problems with human fear and morality; it is not only the sensational story of a grotesque physical change but also the story of the negative behavioural change in himself and his family: how they react to his transformation and how he is dehumanized in their eyes.

Let’s start at the beginning; Gregor wakes up and he needs to get ready for work, all around him he hears the people of the house starting their day, but he cannot get out of bed; he doesn’t feel right, something is different with his body. The minutes tick away, he knows he should get up but he can’t bring himself to do it. Each member of his family knock at his locked door to find out what’s wrong, even his chief from work shows up at the house, and yet Gregor still can’t get up. This section reminded me so much of depression; the difficulty in taking action, the desire to just stay in bed, just a little bit longer, of wanting to shut out the world and enclose yourself in the safety of your room.

Gregor’s family is made up of: his father, who stopped working because of health issues, his mother, who also does not work because of health issues, and a younger sister, in her mid or late teens. The family is served by a maid and a cook. The house is never fully described but it has several rooms and we can guess that this is a middle-class family who live in relative comfort. Not only is Gregor the sole breadwinner whom the family depend upon, he is also currently paying off his father’s debts. While Gregor feels a lot of pressure from both family and work, he also takes a certain pride in knowing that he is so important to the family; he takes pride in his fantasy of noble self-sacrifice. It’s obvious from the beginning that he is being used but as the story progresses we learn just how much he is being taken advantage of. He is a fool for his pride, whilst he built himself up in his mind as the saviour of the family, in truth he was just a malleable tool. I have to admit I can identify with Gregor, my family can be high-maintenance and frequently require help and I do feel a sense of pride at being the one they come to, but it’s a mistake to try to permanently attribute the roles of “helper” and “helpless”, because, as we find out in The Metamorphosis, those roles are of course interchangeable.

As Gregor’s family bang on his door, demanding to know what is going on, we’re told that they can’t get in because Gregor often locks it, a habit picked up whilst traveling for work and staying at inns and hotels. That’s his explanation for why his bedroom door is locked (whilst he was sleeping) in his own family home, but we can guess that the only way for him to get some peace from his insistently needy family is to literally, physically lock them out.

The Metamorphosis is divided into three parts, in part one Gregor has not shown up for work in the morning of the transformation and immediately the general manager shows up at the house demanding to know where Gregor is. Whilst Gregor struggles to get out of bed, struggling with his new giant beetle-like body to stand up right, and hasn’t even managed to unlock his door yet with his insect arms, he can hear the general manager tell the family “we are very often obliged to supress indispositions out of consideration for the firm.” I don’t know how these beliefs are inflicted upon us but this is something I felt when I entered the work industry, and to some extent still haven’t fully shaken off: the idea that we have an obligation to a company, to work, and to feel guilt when we are to unwell to do so. As Gregor struggles with his new body, he considers “that he will later, once the hindrance has been overcome, work all the more industriously and with greater focus.” As if he must of course make up for lost time, as if this transformation is his fault.

When the family discovers his transformation the story sidesteps all realism in dealing with such a phenonium, neither the protagonist nor his family give much thought as to how his transformation actually happened, nor do they seek guidance from doctors or police or clergymen. Like a fairy tale, how and why are not important, what’s important is the effect. This is a story about physical and mental illness, about depression, feelings of inadequacy, feelings of entrapment, the sense of obligation and the illusion of altruism.

In part two, Gregor’s sister, Grete, becomes the self-appointed caregiver to Gregor. Neither their father nor mother venture into Gregor’s room, and Grete feels the same self-sacrificing, self-righteous satisfaction that Gregor felt when he was the sole provider for the family. Grete is now the member of the family who is able “to deal” with the situation. At first, she is proud to be the one to show compassion towards her brother but as time goes by she grows tired of looking after him and start to neglect her duties. One day she orders her mother to help her remove the furniture and belongings from Gregor’s room. On one hand removing the furniture allows Gregor to scurry more comfortably across the walls and the ceiling, on the other hand it removes his human possessions, his memories, his connection to his humanity; he is now just a burdensome creature in a cage.

He thinks to himself that “he should behave calmly and, by employing patience and the utmost consideration, assist his family in enduring the inconveniences his current state inevitably forced him to impose on them.” And yet, although part of his personality still sees himself as the self-sacrificing martyr, the truth is he passively accepting his new situation, he hides under a sofa whenever anyone comes into his room, for most of the story he makes no attempt to engage with the family and even ignores the new servant who is the only one unafraid to be in his presence. Part of Gregor WANTS to be looked after, feels it’s his turn to be cared for. However Gregor does not have the same experience in these matters as his family does: when they were leeching off him they made him out to be their hero, they doted on him, framing a prominent photo of him in the living room and gave him the illusion of control and respect by letting him pick which house they all live in. But as Gregor leeches off his family, he gives them no pleasure in return for their efforts.

Just how much his family used him becomes apparent when, without Gregor’s income, all three members of the family manage to successfully find employment, they reduce household staff, and it is revealed that the father was secretly stowing away part of Gregor’s income without his son’s knowledge. His father gets a sort of security-guard-type job at a bank, which, like Gregor, like Grete, he pompously takes pride in, and wears his uniform all the time, even whilst at home.

All throughout the story the family make no attempts to communicate with Gregor, to see if it is even possible to communicate with him. They hide him away like some dirty family secret, indicative of the attitude towards sufferers of mental illness or physical disease at the time. These people would be hidden away, taken care of yes, but ignored. And even now a large part of society still seems to instinctively want to cast off people with mental and physical disabilities.

There’s a lot more I could analyse about The Metamorphosis, for such a short novella it certainly packs an everlasting punch, it’s a text that is often taught and studied, and in a broad sense uses the horror genre to expose ugly nuances of human egos and relationships.

There’s one last thing I want to write: in part three the situation worsens and Gregor dies, once he dies the family who up until now have been referred to as Gregor’s father, Gregor’s mother, Gregor’s sister / Grete, now become Herr Samsa, Frau Samsa and their daughter. The focus is no longer on Gregor, and as the mother and father look at their daughter’s young adult body, and remark what a fine woman she has become, it’s clear who is the next person to leeched onto.

Review by Book Hamster

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skvaderarts · 4 years

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Apocrypha Chapter Nineteen: Parlay

Masterlist can be found Here! Thanks!

Chapter Nineteen: Parlay

(-~-)

The lights in the hallway had brightened slightly as the sun faded below the horizon. The windows grew dark as the light they had once provided fell from view and revealed the darkness from beyond them, signaling to anyone who possessed a view of them that it was now dusk and probably a good time to turn in for the night. The music that had played in the halls reflected this shift into night, switching off as to not disturb the occupants of the building. While it hadn't been very loud in the first place, it was still a help to those with hyper-keen hearing or simply an aversion to Chopin and Bach, if such people truly existed.

With the change in scenery came a change in mood overall, both from the beauty of the night itself and from the arrival of the Sons of Sparda as they made their way down the hallway towards their room. Vergil's face betrayed his desire to be further from his younger twin in that moment. He possessed no further desire to dwell on the matter at hand, and his younger twin knew precisely every detail of what he'd discussed with Nero in the lobby. It was beyond him to have a meaningful conversation with all three members of his immediate family tonight, owing to the fact that he intended to say something to V once they arrived, and he'd already reached an impasse with Nero for the time being.

But for the brief moment that his mind wandered towards other possible means of escaping his fate, he remembered his time in the underworld and the absolute shit show that everything had to be at the moment. With no acting ruler, the possibilities were endless. The only sensible explanation as to why no one had made an attempt to come after him just yet had to be that internal and external warfare had to be the primary concern of most residents of the underworld. Well, at least the ones with the mental capacity to actually worry about such things.

While the darker side of the Trinity tended to be populous and grand in it's scale and variety, it wasn't exactly packed to the brim with intellectual minds. For all her other shortcomings and disadvantages, Malphas had actually been one of the smarter denizens of Mundus's court. Though he despised quite literally everything about her, especially when it came to things like her appearance, scent, and general existence, he'd be remiss to glance over the fact that she was a powerful sorceress, the likes of which most mortals could only dream of emulating. But from what he understood, she was no longer alive. At least that was a positive outcome of his little "misadventure" in Redgrave City. If he knew who had taken care of her, he'd probably thank them before he eliminated them himself. One couldn't have a demon that powerful just wandering around to do as they pleased. Unless of course his younger twin had taken care of her on his way to fight him…

Nah, he'd still punch Dante in the face.

That had been his fight. How dare he strike her down before he got the chance.

"So are you gonna say sorry or not, Vergil?" Dante asked casually as he followed behind his older twin. It was slightly harder for Vergil to stab him from behind, and that slight logistical advantage might prove handy if the conversation continued on as it had up until this point." Because if you do, I wanna be there for that. Can't miss a once in a lifetime experience like that, ya know? Might even take a few pictures."

Vergil shot his snickering twin a livid glance over his shoulder, not at all appreciating the topic of conversation they were currently stuck on. While they were leaving to return to the office with the others in two days' time, this particular trip was starting to feel like it had already lasted a week. While that could easily be a result of Vergil's sense of time being slightly askew due to his prolonged stay in the underworld, or simply as result of the events that had unfolded that day, he honestly didn't care to think about it or discern a concrete reason. All he knew was that he honestly wanted to stab Dante right now and he was making an effort not to do so. There was a camera in the hallway, one of the few pieces of technology he actually recognized at this point.

Everything pertaining to electronics that had come into existence before his departure into the underworld (and some that had existed before that…) might as well be written in another language as far as he was concerned. But unless surveillance equipment had undergone a fundamental overhaul in the time he'd been away, he understood that whipping out Yamato and cutting slabs of jerky out of his younger sibling wasn't something he could get away with. Their hotel room was another story. Dante would do best to remember that.

"You would like that, wouldn't you? I'd say that I'm sorry to disappoint you, but that would be dishonest and I'm trying to improve certain aspects of my personality." Vergil said almost smugly as they rounded the corner and descended the second to last flight of stairs that led up to their room. They had been up there earlier in the day, but he still despised the idiosyncratic layout of the establishment they were boarding in for the time being. Everything else about it was… fine. He didn't feel one way or another about it. But the stairs and the small hallways were positively claustrophobic and he wanted to snap the neck of the person who had designed them. Maybe he'd toss them down their own stairs while he was at it…

Vergil needed something to kill. There had to be demons in this city somewhere.

The younger of the two sighed as he continued to snicker to himself, graduating to actual laughter. "Oh brother, you're just so damn funny, you know that? Tell me, how do you go through life day after day with a stick that far up your-"

"Dante. Don't start. I'm not cleaning your blood off of these stairs. They have carpet."

The twins casually glanced in Nero's direction as they approached him. He was headed in their direction and had caught the tail end of their little discussion. While he was sure that whatever they were going on about was more than likely Vergil's fault, he wasn't in the mood for this kind of shit tonight. They would have to do this another time, preferable when he and the rest of the general public weren't in the line of fire.

"Oh, come on, Nero! What else is housekeeping going to do to keep themselves busy this time of day? They could use a little excitement." Dante spoke in a manner so straight to the point and sarcastic that Nero actually couldn't tell if he was just screwing with them both or if he was actually serious. It could be hard to tell at times. Regardless, his answer was still the same.

"Look, just shut and go back downstairs before someone remembers that they can move faster than the old ass cameras in this place can keep up with. We're supposed to be getting dinner in a half hour, remember?" Nero said humorously. They had to make it to at least the end of day one before swords started getting put through people.

Dante shrugged constantly at the "suggestion" and turned to face the other end of the hall. "Hey, why not. There has to be a pizza place around here somewhere. And besides, I wasn't coming up here for anything anyways."

Vergil stopped dead in his tracks, slowly turning around to face his twin brother with a semi confused and semi livid expression on his face. The sideways look he gave him spoke volumes as to his state of mind. He blinked for a moment before seemingly coming to some sort of internal conclusion. He was clearly skirting the precipice of his mental reserves. "You… then what did you bother coming up here in the first place, Dante? What could you possibly stand to gain from it?"

Again, Dante shrugged nebulously. Nero gave him a half knowing half warning look, preparing himself for whatever innate stupidity was about to unfold. He'd been around Dante long enough to be able to tell when he was just shooting the shit for the sake of it, and that wasn't quite what this was. But it didn't take a mental giant to see that that was exactly what this line of conversation was going to accomplish. Maybe he just liked to fan the flames from time to time? Or maybe it was an annoying younger brother thing?

"Honestly nothing. I just have nothing better to do. Don't you have a kid to be talking to?"

Before Nero could even blink, a blue spectral sword pierced the security camera that was mounted above the top of the staircase, filming the adjoining hallway. It was a good thing that there was only one present as it made things much easier to disable. Way back when, Vergil probably wouldn't have bothered, citing his generally lack of interest in other people seeing what he was doing. Most cameras didn't really pick up anything that quickly at the time. But this was the dawn of a new age, and he didn't feel like breaking into the security office and stabbing the control box or whatever it was to pieces after he was done making mincemeat out of Dante. That was too much effort for a fight that would be over with so quickly.

As the flimsy piece of optical equipment toppled over uselessly, Dante and Vergil practically launched at one another. The lights flickered on and off for a moment, allowing just enough time for Nero to move towards them to try and block the oncoming assault they were preparing to launch at one another. Where on earth had they even produced those swords from so quickly?! There was no way that either of them had simply stuck them down the backs of their pants. Did Dante's new blade come with a few notable upgrades? And did Yamato have its own pocket dimension?

To be honest, that made more sense than it should've given the context under which both of the weapons had been produced and forged in the first place. After all, they weren't exactly normal blades. Still though, he couldn't make Yamato do that during the short time he'd claimed ownership over it.

Just as the lights blinked back on, everything came to an unexpected stop. Nero did a massive double take at the scene before him as both Dante and Vergil blinked in apparent confusion at the sight before them. Standing with a look of what could only be described as unamused disapproval on his face between them was V. The young summoner was leaned against the wall with his arms folded across his chest, nowhere near foolish enough to extend any of his valuable extremities to span the space between the two blades in an attempt to halt their progress. They were almost as tall as he was, after all. He had enough problems to deal with on a day to day basis. A missing limb wasn't going to be one if he had anything to say about it.

Both of the twins stared at him with a certain level of surprised trepidation and perplexed annoyance as they tried to piece together the exact moment he'd arrived, but neither of them came to a worthwhile conclusion. Nero, having more experience with the things that V was capable of was still somewhat surprised, but was honestly more relieved than anything else. It was good to see him out of the bed at the very least. Given the tone of the conversation they'd just participated in, he'd been under the impression that V was just going to turn in for the night. Had they accidentally woken him up or something? Maybe he had a stupidity detector built into Shadow? It wasn't out of the realm of possibility.

"... Would you not?" He said flatly, clearly unamused.

The three of them all looked at him as though he'd grown a second head. He'd said that in a tone of voice so close to telling them to fuck off that they actually had to double check who they were talking to for a moment. V had clearly had enough of their bullshit for one day, and Nero was honestly almost ready to laugh at how much he looked like he wanted to tell them to go to their rooms like the five-year-olds they were behaving like. Dante and Vergil glanced at him and then back at one another before collectively sighing under their breath and sheathing their weapons, allowing them to vanish back into the void they'd acquired them from. They then shared another look of pissed off annoyance at the fact that they had done so in unison, clearly not entertained by the twinly synchronization they had just indulged in.

"Fine by me." Dante said straight-faced, raising his hands in defeat, pirouetting dramatically in the direction of the stairs as he headed towards them." I was just leaving."

He clearly had no intention of getting into a disagreement with V. His melodramatic nephew clearly had a few tricks up his sleeve, and the sudden realization that he could teleport immediately moved him a few notches up his "nope" list. There was no way in hell he was going to take on two people who could teleport. That was the kind of psychotic death wish material that masochists reveled in.

Vergil glanced in the opposite direction, discomfort falling over him like a heavy fog. If he didn't know any better, he'd almost swear that he was embarrassed or something akin to it. Fighting with his twin in the hallway of a random hotel after busting a security camera instead of coming to speak with him wasn't a very good look, and he was fully aware of that fact. Everyone present was.

"As you wish, then." Vergil said, still not quite looking at his son." I was just on my way to speak with you."

V didn't really care to acknowledge that, instead opting to stare at him in silence, fully aware of the fact that Vergil was going to get tired of him doing so sooner or later and face him. People had been doing that to him for his entire life, and he knew how effective it was at making his skin crawl. Why not apply it in this particular case?

"I imagine you were." V spoke softly as though he was making an effort not to startle him away." I was starting wondering if you were ever going to approach me after you pulled me from the water and followed me here from the beach. And here you are."

There was a clear level of questioning dissonance to his statement, a certain level of silent anticipation that he carried himself with that was apparent to all who saw him. Perhaps it was the way he'd crossed his arms and leaned back as if to say that he was still waiting, or the way his gaze softened slightly as he looked at his father, but V clearly expected him to say something he wasn't saying. And Vergil had a feeling that he knew exactly what it was. The problem was that his brain and his mouth were not communicating at the moment in time.

"Nearly drowning you today wasn't my intention." Vergil paused for a moment, taking the opportunity to look up at him and actually make meaningful eye contact. He immediately drew V's attention, the younger of the two clearly taking him more seriously as a result." I suppose what I'm trying to impart upon you is that I regret doing so. Are you capable of forgiving my… misstep?

As V suspected, the word "sorry" wasn't strictly a part of Vergil's vocabulary. But still, he wasn't completely incapable of seeing that his father was indeed trying to apologize to him. A part of him actually found it tragically funny that he was so god awful at this, not at all surprised that this inability to properly express their repressed emotions despite a desire to seemingly running in the family. It was painful but touching to him all at once, his level of satisfaction with its level of implementation notwithstanding. V was more than willing to take this as one of those "it's the thought that counts" scenarios, especially after the conversation they'd had that morning.

"That isn't an unreasonable request. But I have a condition." V said, glancing in Nero's general direction," Have you ever apologized to Nero for what you've done?"

Vergil gave him a curious look, not so much confused as he was unsure where he was going with this line of questioning. He more than understood where he was going with this, he just didn't comprehend how they had arrived at this junction. What was it about today that made him wonder what the weather was like in hell this time of year?

Hot.

The answer was hot, with the exception of the few areas that were permanently frozen.

They were both. And it sucked.

"No, I don't suppose I have. For what in particular?"

The white haired summoner raised an eyebrow slightly, seemingly wondering where to begin. "... Everything."

A moment of self awareness seemed to hit Vergil as he glanced over at Nero. The shorter haired devil hunter stared at them blankly, internally questioning how he'd ended up in this conversation in the first place. All he wanted to do was go and eat dinner with everyone else and go to bed. It was still Nero's responsibility to get the children to actually sleep tonight.

Vergil closed his eyes for a moment, coming to terms with the fact that he wasn't getting out of there without saying something. While he knew that he was long overdue to do so, he genuinely wanted to just drop this and revisit it another time. But V had made a valid point, and perhaps it was best to just get it over with. It seemed that V was willing to take two half apologies in the place of one full one. How in keeping with his mostly reasonable persona.

"... Cutting your arm off instead of simply explaining my motivations was not a good decision. That hasn't escaped me. I'm glad it grew back." Vergil said simply, giving Nero a thoughtful but much more composed look than he'd had a few moments ago." Neither was missing out on the majority of your life. Or any of my actions this afternoon. I trust you've recovered and that we can come to some sort of compromise. "

Nero shrugged slightly, unsure of what to say. He appreciated that. At least he thought he did. The young hunter had spent so much time expecting to never receive any sort of apology for his father's actions that he was just now realizing that he didn't know how to process one. That had to be unhealthy.

Wait a moment…

"Tell you what, I have a condition too." Nero said as he folded his arms, reveling in the power he held over his father as the older hunter seemed to physically die inside. Now this he could get used to. Was this what it was like to be V?" You take care of the kids tonight and we can call it even on the whole back sanding thing. I'll get back to you on the rest of that."

Vergil sighed heavily at the prospect of babysitting. There was absolutely no way in the nine circles of hell that he would've ever considered spending the night alone with Nero's three children. While they seemed well behaved, all things considered, he just didn't want to. But it was only for one evening and then he could force Nero to regain custody of them…

"... Just this once, and never again. I don't fraternize with children."

While Nero should've considered his father's description of his children a red flag, his mind was perfectly willing to consider this an acceptable solution to a mounting problem he'd been facing for the last hour or so. After seeing Kyrie in that bathing suite, he simply had to have a little alone time with her. He wasn't sure where they were going yet, but it would only be for an hour or so…

"Deal. Now let's go get something to eat. All this forgiveness is making me hungry." He said with a nod, more than certain that the others had probably left without them by now.

V stood up straight, no longer leaning against the wall. He turned and walked in the direction of the stairs, passing them as he went. The young summoner seemingly needing no further convincing. "While I doubt that any of the establishments in this town will compare to Kyrie's cooking, I'm inclined to agree. We should leave. I'm sure management will be up sometime soon to inspect the camera."

Nero turned in the direction of the stairs to follow him, nodding in agreement. He was willing to bet that his older brother was correct in that assessment. Both V and Kyrie seemed to be able to handle themselves in a kitchen. Vergil simply watched them both leave for a moment, thinking quietly to himself. Noticing their lack of company, they both stopped and glanced over their shoulders, more or less trying to assess what the problem was. "... Were you not coming, then?" V said quietly, his eyes betraying a hint of disappointment at the prospect.

The younger of the two mirrored him, though clearly more confused than disappointed. He got the impression that Vergil didn't eat very much. "Yea, are you staying?"

After a moment, Vergil shook his head, quietly admitting defeat. He'd considered staying behind to think and mentally prepare himself for the task at hand, but he decided against it in that instant. Turning them both down seemed like a bit of a lateral step backwards.

"I'll come."

With that he started after them, the two seemingly pleased as they nodded and turned back towards the stairs. V lingered a bit longer, opting to wait for Vergil as he had done for him on several occasions leading up to this. As Vergil approached, V spoke quietly under his breath, so much so that Nero couldn't hear him despite the fact that he was only a few yards away.

"I apologize, but it seems I have nothing for you to carry this time. You'll have to contain your disappointment."

Vergil repressed the urge to show how entertained he was by V's little quip and followed after him. So he possessed a sense of humor after all. And as for the bag… there would be another time. They then headed towards the stairs, content that the matter at hand had been resolved for the time being and completely unaware that Dante had heard every moment of their exchange from the bottom of the stairs, simply choosing not to ruin what would otherwise be an important and positive moment for them. At the end of the day, that was all Dante really wanted for his twin anyway. He couldn't think of a better prospect than what had just unfolded, and he hadn't even needed to threaten to shoot Vergil.

Perhaps there was some hope for him after all.

(-~-)

#DMC #Apocrypha #V #Vergil #Vitale #Nero #Dante #DMC5 #Post DMC 5 #DMCV #Devil May Cry #Devil May Cry 5 #Devil May Cry V #A03 #a03 fanfic

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summahsunlight · 4 years

Text

We Belong to the Stars, Ch. 25

Rating: Mature (18+ only)

Word Count: 2765

Pairings: Poe/Skywalker!OC

Characters: Poe Dameron, Leia Organa, BB-8, Kaleb Skywalker (OC), Evelyn Skywalker (OC), Karé Kun, Iolo Arana, Snap Wexley, Jessika Pava, BB-8

Read on AO3

Taglist: @ms-dont-care If you want to be added to the taglist let me know :)

Alarm klaxons blasted throughout the base signaling heavy causalities were incoming.

Evelyn pushed her way into the command center, hearing the frantic radio messages and communications. "Is it Black Squadron?" She asked, grabbing Kaydel by the arm. When the younger woman wouldn't answer her because her aunt had given them strict orders to keep Evelyn out of the loop--Evelyn shouted, "Is it Black Squadron?"

Kaydel could only nod her head before getting back to work; Evelyn tore off towards the surface of the planet. This was the worst part of being grounded, she couldn't help out her team, she couldn't help Poe. For the last two months she had watched as Poe led mission after mission, as she was forced to sit on the sidelines. Heart thundering in her chest, Evelyn made it to the surface just as four x-wings touched down. Immediately she could see that they were heavily damaged and chaos broke out on the flight pad.

Medics were running in, fire crews were dousing the flames on the fighters, and people were shouting, trying desperately to be heard over the blaring alarms. Evelyn ducked underneath mechanical crew and headed straight for Poe's x-wing. BB-8 was being lowered from the socket, beeping wildly and the little droid rushed at her when he caught sight of her.

"It's okay, BeeBee," Evelyn assured him, even if in that moment she didn't feel it.

"Lieutenant, I need you to get out of the way, ma'am," someone said behind her and she felt fingers grasping her arm.

Evelyn turned to see a medic pushing her back as the hatch to Black One hissed open. Immediately the medics swarmed the fighter, she didn't even know she was holding her breath until she heard Poe shouting at them that he was fine. Letting out the breath, she reached down and gave a very anxious BB-8 some belly scratches.

Poe emerged from the cockpit, shoving his helmet at one of the medics before gingerly peeling himself out of the pilot's seat. "I'm fine!" he hissed when the medics insisted on looking at him. "Just some bruising; I'll live."

She didn't know why but that statement made her eyes fill with tears and she released her frustration in a choked sob. BB-8 nudged her, trying to comfort her, and moaned softly that he was sorry she wasn't flying with them anymore; he missed her.

"I miss her too, BeeBee," Poe said before pulling Evelyn into his arms. "It's okay; we're fine."

"I hate this, Poe," Evelyn whimpered against his flight suit which smelled like smoke and engine oil. "I hate that I'm not out there with you."

He pressed a kiss to her temple. Poe pulled away from her, wrapped his arm around her torso, and headed back towards the base. He was barely concealing the winces on his face as he walked, but she didn't argue with him. "I need to speak to General Organa--update her on what happened out there."

Evelyn nodded and walked with him. She looked over her shoulder at the medics attempting to tend to the other members of Black Squadron. It turned out that all the pilots were equally as stubborn when it came to seeking medical treatment. Glancing back at Poe, she asked, "What did happen out there, Poe?"

Poe sighed, heavily. "A mess--a big giant mess. We need to figure out whose leaking information to the First Order and we need to figure it out now. Otherwise, we're going to be dealing with worse than Karé breaking her leg."

"Karé broke her leg?"

"Yeah, as we were escaping Terex and his thugs again."

"Who are you going to suggest replaces her?"

"You."

"Wait? What?"

He stopped and turned to face her. Poe could see the confusion in her eyes, after all, she had been grounded for two months. "On the way back here, I got to thinking--our latest missions--those have been for your aunt--Dane has no idea what Black Squadron is doing. As much as I hate the guy--he's not our mole."

She wasn't quite following his reasoning as to why he wanted her back on the squad. Evelyn stepped aside as someone rushed by her, heading towards the surface. "But you said yourself that there's no way Snap, Jess, Karé or L'ulo would betray the Resistance."

Poe nodded. "Yeah, that is until Terex knew exactly where to fire to disable Karé's fighter--she's lucky she got out of there with only a broken leg. Who knows our fighters better than us, Evie?"

Evelyn paused, understanding flashing in her blue eyes. "Mechanics--they know our ships just as well as we do if not better. So you think...you think one of our mechanics is the mole?"

"Only theory that makes sense."

"Why would one of our mechanics betray us like this?"

"I don't know," Poe said, grabbing her hand and leading her towards the command center. "But I intend to find out."

"How?" Evelyn asked, walking along with him. "Are you even sure you know which mechanic it is?"

There was no response from him, partially because Poe didn't have any idea which mechanic was snitching on them, and partially because they had entered the command center and Leia was gesturing for them to join her in the situation room. "Have a seat," she instructed the two pilots. "We have a lot to discuss."

Evelyn shot Poe a glance as he sat down, wincing in pain as he did so. A brief look of concern washed over Leia's face as she noticed the pain Poe was in, but knowing the commander, Leia didn't bring it up. After this meeting was over, Evelyn was going to drag his ass down to the medcenter and have the medics look at him. She didn't care if she had to drag him there kicking and screaming--he was going. She knew it was more than just some bruising.

Leia called something up on the holotable, watching Poe and Evelyn's expressions intensely. "Red Squadron was able to obtain the rest of those plans for the First Order base."

Poe blinked, eyes wide. "That looks a lot bigger than the Death Star."

"Because it is," Leia said, solemnly. "It's a base entirely built into a planet."

"How is the weapon charged?" Evelyn asked, anxiously.

"Agent Dane is working on decrypting the transmissions from Agent Lothor; engineers are looking at the specs."

"Is it operational?"

"Not yet. Maybe in another six to eight months."

Poe smiled, wistfully at Evelyn. "So... that gives us plenty of time to figure out how to blow it up."

Evelyn looked at him, incredulously. "I know you're trying to be funny... but at the same time you make a great point."

Leia shut the holoimage down. "We might not have all the time in the galaxy, but... we have enough time that I think Black Squadron has earned a break, Commander."

Standing, Poe nodded his head, noticing that Evelyn was watching him closely. "There's one more thing I wanted to discuss with you, ma'am."

"Yes. Evelyn is back on the squadron."

"What--how did you know that was what I was going to ask?"

The General's response was a gentle smile, and then an order for Poe to report to the med bay-- Evelyn offered to take him there herself. Poe argued the entire way out of the situation room that he didn't need to see a doctor, to which Evelyn argued that the wincing in pain every time he moved slightly was because she knew how hard he flew, how hard he pushed himself in the cockpit--she was taking him to the med bay.

Chuckling, Leia shook her head. Poe and Evelyn's bickering reminded her of herself and Han--L'ulo had been right all those weeks ago when he'd claimed that the young pilots were very much like a certain princess and smuggler. Feeling a heaviness press on her chest, Leia hoped that Poe and Evelyn's story had a much happier ending that hers.

"How's the prince?" Snap asked when Evelyn joined the group of pilots at dinner.

"Stubborn," Evelyn responded, sitting down next to her brother. "But he was right--it really is just some bruising."

Kaleb laughed. "You're not going to live that down--that Poe was right. He's going to remind you every chance he gets about this. Where is he anyway?"

Evelyn sighed and looked over her shoulder. "He went to take a shower, apparently he wasn't hungry."

"Well, he's going to miss out," Jess said, holding up a bottle of brandy. "We're heading down to the lake after this to kickback."

"Sure you want him drunk again?" Kaleb quipped, grinning. "You do remember that last time he got drunk, right?"

"According to him--he wasn't," Snap chuckled.

Kaleb frowned, slightly. He'd seen Poe a hell of lot drunker than he'd been the night down at the beach--but, Jas Dane had also not been around, hovering around Evelyn and calling her disparaging names. "Yeah well, thanks to him I have to deal with Dane and I'm pretty sure if I punch him my aunt is going to kill me."

Snap shrugged his broad shoulders. "I'd look the other way if I were her. It's not like Dane doesn't deserve being punched--in fact, I'm pretty sure that if you did hit him, he probably would have done something to deserve it."

Evelyn had noticed that ever since the fight on the beach, Jas had been keeping his distance from Black Squadron, partially because Leia had assigned Kaleb's squadron to retrieve the transmissions from Lothor. She didn't expect him, however, to change his attitude. It would take more than Poe beating him up to accomplish that. She finished up her dinner, decided that she wasn't going join the other pilots down by the lake.

Jess looked at her, curiously. "Where are you going to go?"

Smiling, Evelyn replied, "to make sure the prince doesn't get into any trouble tonight."

Sunset on D’Qar reminded him of home. Poe climbed his favorite grassy hill, deciding to skip a night of drunken revelry with his friends, and opted for the quiet of a late summer sunset. The sun was just beginning to dip into the horizon when he spread the thin, worn blanket out and sat down. After being given the rest of the evening off, Poe had taken the opportunity the to freshen up after spending almost four days away from base. It felt good to be out the flight suit and gear and in his familiar leather jacket.

Cool metal brushed against his hand and Poe smiled. It also felt good to have his trusty droid at his side. BB-8 had been following him around, concerned with how tired his master appeared, but Poe didn't mind. After all, the little droid had kept his rekindled romance with Evelyn a secret since they had kissed on the light freighter months ago now. Even though he was pretty sure everyone was aware that they were back together, BB-8 still hadn't said a word to the others. Poe sighed, feeling his muscles ache. The mission had been dangerous but they had still gotten additional information that might lead them to Lor San Tekka. Poe closed his eyes for a moment, letting the setting sun warm his face. It had been a long day… an incredibly long day…

“Do you mind if I join you?” Evelyn’s voice questioned, quietly, behind him.

“Of course not,” Poe replied, opening his eyes. He watched as she sat down next to him, sun reflecting in her copper brown hair. Gods, is she beautiful, he thought as he reached out and ran his fingers through her hair. “Not in the mood to join in on the drinking tonight?”

Evelyn shook her head. "No. I think I've had enough of cantinas and bars and drinking for a while."

Poe chuckled and draped his arm over her shoulders, drawing her close to him. "Me too."

She snuggled against the perfect nook between his arm and shoulder, noticing that he winced slightly. "Does this hurt?"

He kissed the top of her head. "For you, I'll take a little bit of pain if it means I can hold you." He turned his attention to the last bit of sunlight in the sky, watching as the sun dipped completely below the horizon and out of sight. The air around them instantly cooled now that the warmth of the sun was gone and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Evelyn shiver. “Are you cold?”

Wrapping her arms around her upper body, Evelyn shrugged. “A little; I didn't really plan a head when I went looking for you.”

“Here,” he said, starting to peel his jacket off, “take mine.”

“Poe,” she protested as he draped it over her shoulders, “you don’t have too.”

“I’m trying to be chivalrous here, Evie.”

“You don’t have to be!”

“I want to be!”

“Sometimes you're so difficult.”

He laughed at the remark, his dark brown eyes sparkling. Poe held onto his jacket, now hanging over her shoulders. “There. Warmer?”

She felt color rise to her cheeks underneath his gaze. “Yes. Thank you.”

Poe held her gaze a little longer than he had expected to, but he couldn’t tear his eyes off of her. Kiss her, he told himself, but was completely transfixed by her; her eyes, the curve of her lips, how his jacket was much too big on her…

Evelyn smiled at him, coyly. "You know you can kiss me, right? I think I've established that I'm alright with that."

Slowly, using his hold on the jacket to guide him, Poe pressed his lips to hers in a soft kiss. He released his hold on the jacket and wrapped his strong arms around her waist, guiding her towards the blanket. Her mouth opened this his, and he deepened the kiss as he laid her down underneath him.

Closing her eyes, Evelyn sighed, as Poe’s lips began to kiss her along her jawline, behind her ear, and then down to her collarbone. She felt a fire spread across her skin wherever his lips touched her.

Poe pulled back, his left hand idly stroking her hip. “Hey, BeeBee-Ate?”

BB-8 beeped, his eye socket watching every move his master made.

“You can head back to base; I’m sure you need a recharge by now,” Poe said, kissing Evelyn, hungrily. “Oh, and still not a word of this…to anyone… got it?”

There was a chirping affirmative from BB-8, before he rolled away, down the grassy hill and back towards the base. Poe smiled as he leaned down to capture her lips once again with his own. She yielded to his gentle pressure, allowing him to deepen their kiss. He pressed her back into the thin blanket underneath him, his arms wrapping tightly about her, hands burying in her soft hair. Their legs became entangled the heavier their kisses became, and he felt what little control he had over his senses slipping away as desire took hold of him.

He broke their kiss, breathing hard, and slowly pressed kisses into the hollow of her neck, dipping lower and lower until he was kissing the top of her chest. Her hands tightened in his hair, he heard her little gasps of pleasure and felt a shiver run up his spine.

Poe pulled back, raising his head to gaze at her. Evelyn was breathing just as hard as he was, her hair spread out around her on the blanket, evident that hands had been playing in it mere moments before. He grinned at her just before he kissed her once again and pressed his body into hers because he wanted to feel as much of her as he could between the fabric of their clothing.

Evelyn began to unbutton his shirt. One hand idly drifting south towards the waistband of his trousers…

....and his com link went off, interrupting the heated moment, and requesting that he gather Black Squadron to meet in the situation room.

"Damn it," Poe sighed after the com link shut down. "I knew having the whole night off was too good to be true."

"It has to be important if Aunt Leia is calling for us, after giving us the night off," Evelyn replied, idly playing with his curls.

Poe closed his eyes and nodded. He sat up, holding his hand out to her to help her up. Opening his eyes, he took a deep breath. "Let's go see what they want."

#star wars fanfiction #poe dameron fanfiction #poe x oc #poe dameron x oc #poe dameron #evelyn skywalker (oc)#leia organa #snap wexley #jess pava #black squadron

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aftermathdb · 4 years

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DEATH BATTLE Review: Mob vs. Tatsumaki

Two Psychic Powerhouses do battle!

Mob′s Preview.

The preview opens up with the hosts describing Shiego Kageyama, whose name can sometimes be read as Mob. So that’s what people generally call him.

Apparently, he accidentally took over a local gang, founded his own cult,

(as seen here)

And is an incredibly powerful psychic warrior.

Keyword being “psychic.” Physically speaking… He’s…

Yeah…

But, thanks to his psychic powers, Mob can throw all sorts of debris around to slam his opponents.

He has an incredible powerset that would give Mewtwo a run for his money, and with all that power, he’s pulled off some insane stuff, something that the hosts are about to get into now.

Well, the fact that Mob’s psychic abilities are reliant on his emotions is a bit strange. When he was younger and tried to use them, he accidentally hurt his younger brother. So he wanted nothing to do with them.

But like all emotions, it would never really go away. When Mob gets angry enough, he explodes in whatever emotion he’s feeling at the time.

Each of these are incredibly powerful, but it’s the ???% form that’s the most powerful.

Mob has caught lightning, flew several kilometers in seconds, and one time, he powered up so quickly, he apparently caught fire. Taking into account as to how fast he would have to have been moving to pull this off, on top of taking it literally, this speed comes out to…

5626.64 feet per second.

Another time, he tanked a strike from another psychic,

(This one), a feat that measures out to over 80 tons of TNT.

Mob has created entire spheres out of buildings in the same fight!

(Katamari Damaci is on the Switch right?- I kinda want to give it a try after seeing this).

Mob even moved clouds to great effect. In real life, it takes a friggin’ _Hydrogen Bomb _to pull that off.

So, Mob’s definitely benching way more than your average joe. This feat is worth more than all of the nuclear warheads in the world!

Mob isn’t invincible though. He does have his limits, and those limits are pretty clear.

But for average middle school student Shigeo Kageyama, this is all in a day’s work. He’s even managed to work past his past and accept his powers and his emotions.

So look out, he may not look like much, but he’s one heck of a powerhouse.

Tatsumaki′s Preview.

In a world where monsters and villains constantly threaten the world, mankind is fortunately protected by superheroes. Some of which are so powerful, that they can use psychic abilities to combat the bad guys. They’re known as Espers, and the best of them is the Tornado of Terror, Tatsumaki.

At the age of seven, Tatsumaki was taken to a facility to test and study her psychic powers. Seven.

Thankfully, she was rescued by a hero who… told her not to always rely on someone to save her. Well, she decided to become a superhero despite or maybe even because of those words.

As an Esper, Tatsumaki can fling all sorts of things at her opponent. She mainly likes to focus on telekinetically throwing rocks at her opponents. Big rocks, small rocks, rocks from outer space, she doesn’t really care. And for all the non-rocks out there feeling left out, she also throws those as well.

Trains, buildings, monsters, she doesn’t really discriminate.

Tatsumaki is so powerful that she can create extremely powerful earthquakes.

Her power is above all other Espers, even more than her older-looking but still younger sister, Fubuki.

Because anime is weird.

And thanks to her horrible upbringing, Tatsumaki is kinda a brat with some major trust issues. To the point that she doesn’t want Fubuki to have friends.

Tatsumaki’s powers are precise enough to the point that she can do all sorts of crazy-ass things. But Boomstick wants to focus on one thing in particular…

(Well, there’s Wiz’s good deed for the day).

She can mess with any other person’s psyonic abilities, so long as they’re weaker than hers. Which translates to pretty much everyone else.

And while that “Pulling a meteor from space” thing isn’t actually present from the source material, it’s still plausible given her abilities.

At one point, she pulled a bad guy hideout from under a city that was about 1500 meters underground. Since Z City is similar to Ginza Tokyo, there’s some calculations that can be made from that feat.

This means that Tatsumaki can psychically bench over 3,200,000,000 tons. That’s like benching 62 Great Walls of China all at once.

And she’s insanely quick too. At one point an alien named Boros attacked City A with a bunch of bullets. Tatsumaki redirected them back at his ship at a speed of 647,300 meters per second.

She’s extremely tough too. To the point that she can withstand multiple hits from significantly powerful attacks like being hit with 300 times the weight of Earth.

She’s even managed to fight the One Punch Man himself, Saitama. She still lost, but it was probably for the better, as she was humbled by the experience, and finally mellowed out about Fubuki having friends.

But Tatsumaki isn’t invincible. Espers in her world aren’t great at multitasking in the sense that if she’s attacking, she can’t be defending.

Still, very few can rival the power that she has at her thoughts.

The Battle Itself.

Luis, Jerky, Kiid, and Kayas on animation. Mob will be voiced by Beau Bridgland and Tatsumaki will be voiced by Jennifer Alyx. one hundred percent by Brandon Yates, and Chris Kokkinos lead on audio.

So, the fight starts because Mob is lost, and mistakes Tatsumaki for a student of the local middle school. She takes offense, and slams him into a wall.

Mob, of course, retaliates, and the Tornado of Terror also starts the fight.

(Look at this scene! It looks like it could have come straight from the anime!)

Anyways, about ten seconds later, Tatsumaki is pushing Mob to his first limit, and is striking at his shield.

Had this been anyone else, they would have been dead. But as for Mob?

He goes to 100%.

For the record, Mob gets all the badass lines in this fight.

Tatsumaki gets her shield up in time, but Mob’s more varied arsenal gives her a run for her money.

But all this attack does is just push Mob to his full maximum.

The battle is eventually taken to a crater, where Mob disables Tatsumaki.

Finishing Blow in

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

Okay, I lied. Tatsumaki gets one badass line.

Verdict + Explanation.

First off, Wiz says the typical line.

And then they go into how much of a stomp it was for Tatsumaki. According to the DBC, whenever they say this, it usually means that it was hard to get to this conclusion, and that they had no idea as to who was going to win.

But to be fair, Mob does have some edges. Like the simultaneous offense and defense ability, and a few others.

Unfortunately though, he’s just a middle-schooler who never wanted to use his powers to begin with.

Tatsumaki is a high-ranked Superhero who trained at an early age. Experience advantage: Tatsumaki

Mob catching lightning seems impressive, but it’s not quite what you might think. There’s two types of lightning. The leader, and the return stroke.

Mob is clearly catching the leader. While impressive, it’s not quite on the same level as Tatsumaki.

The bullets she caught were all solid, with no explosions attached. Saitama proved this by him punching them with no boom.

Given their size and how much damage they could do, the speed they would be moving at would mean that Tatsumaki’s reaction would be nearly 9 times greater

Now, as for Mob’s absorption abilities, there’s a clear limit that he has, considering that he had to transfer some of that energy into broccoli.

So yeah. There’s research involving broccoli.

Impressive. Now take in mind as to how powerful Tatsumaki is.

Tatsumaki launching those bullets back comes out to about 470 gigatons of TNT. More than enough to overpower Mob’s shield.

Simply put, Tatsumaki’s output exceeded Mob’s.

By about a factor of 9, to be precise. And with her speed, she could switch between offense and defense so fast that it wouldn’t really matter if Mob could do both at once.

And Mob is more of a defender than an attacker. And with defense not being something that could outlast Tatsumaki, he was kinda dead in the water. Especially since Tatsumaki wasn’t dependent on her emotions to use her powers like Mob is.

The winner is Tatsumaki.

Overall impression.

If they were trying to get people to watch and/or read these guys’ adventures, they certainly succeeded. Overall, the feel of the episode has great humor to it, and the animation is top-notch.

I was even under the impression that Mob would win thanks to his simultaneous abilities of offense and defense. So, they were pretty good about keeping some people on their toes.

7.8/10

Next Time…

Oh god. I feel so bad for the animators for this one.

Is there a fight that you want me to review? - Send an ask/request, and I’ll look into it!

Do you want to read my fanfic based around DEATH BATTLE itself? click here!

Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you next time for…

Total Insanity

#Death Battle #Deathbattle #review

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neverreallythoughtaboutthefuture · 7 years

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I have a (slightly) bad feeling about this...

Alright, after watching the teaser and the first trailer for “Pacific Rim: Uprising”, I have to admit that I’m still very confused regarding how I feel about the upcoming sequel… Or how I’m “supposed to feel” regarding its current marketing strategy... First, I know that, within 10 years, there probably would have been some significant technological advances in the world since the war, and it’s likely normal that the new Jaegers would look the way they do – i.e. all shiny, sleek and new, and more or less built from the same overall platform. Still, those Jaegers (and the pilots inside) are moving so fluidly and effortlessly that it’s difficult for me to believe that they are huge, heavy pieces of complex machinery piloted by two tiny human beings. Some of the buildings surrounding the Jaegers also look a bit like what you’d expect to see in a videogame… I’m not sure if that’s because they wanted to give the new post-war world a more futuristic look, or because they spent a little less time on animation and special effects than they did with the original movie (especially that scene here from 1:50 to 2:15 approx.).

And you can pilot a Jaeger with just some kind of backpack suit and gloves now? Once again, alright, I know, new technology, but still!

(Okay, I get that this character is a hacker (I think), and probably a genius, and she seems to have more or less built that Jaeger herself (or with some help) from scrap parts or something, because it appears to be much smaller and have a more rugged look with her feet stuck in some types of boots (as opposed to newer models), etc. But even that idea seems the tiniest bit too much for me...).

I did expect the Jaegers themselves to be different, and able to do some new stuff (like yes, flying, and perhaps joining together to create a larger robot, etc.), but I think I was still expecting the pilots themselves to require to be a little more solidly strapped in, and still move like their bodies are the size of a skyscraper! Here, they just seem to be able to jump around in the Conn-pod and do acrobatics, and their Jaegers just… copy them? I dunno… Perhaps it will make more sense and look better in the actual movie when we get to see more than just quick bits and pieces of some scattered scenes, but I’m having a slightly hard time understanding how you can keep your balance in there doing a round kick with seemingly nothing attached to your feet or even the rest of your body!

Where’s the Conn-pod situated? In the chest? The head? If you’re round kicking and the Jaeger is round kicking with you as well... Assuming you’re in the head of the robot, wouldn’t the platform you’re standing on be sharply shoved to the side while you’re trying to perform that move?

There was already a pretty huge level of suspension of disbelief required in “Pacific Rim” when it came to how well the pilots were able to sustain being thrown around in such large robots… All you have to do is watch the scene in the beginning where Gipsy Danger collapses on the beach, and imagine that there’s a tiny human being in that head when it hits the ground from such height to know what I mean. Actually, the laws of physics didn’t quite seem to apply to the first movie in general, but the way it was filmed still made it feel so tangible that I was perfectly fine with stopping asking questions, and just going with it! Here, I’m not so sure… Unless they’ve somehow completely altered the gravity inside the Conn-pods? Otherwise how are you two jumping like this with the lashes and staying suspended mid-jump in the air? What’s going on? How are you connected to the Jaeger’s body and sharing a common “nervous system” with it?

Or perhaps they are held in place by some sort of rig in their backs that is also allowing them to pivot? I’m trying to be open to these changes, I really am... But one of the things I really loved about Guillermo Del Toro’s approach was how he was able to make fantasy look like it was firmly grounded in reality by giving us a solid sense of size and scale, and the illusion that it took a great amount of both physical and inner strength to pilot a Jaeger. Here, it somehow looks like you could easily put the two pilots in a Conn-pod that’s situated outside of the Jaeger to control it remotely, and it would basically do the same thing. I’d have an easier time believing that they’re inside their Jaeger if the Conn-pod was pivoting with them, at the very least... Perhaps that’s what’s not visually working for me. From the looks of it, the floor of the Conn-pod is still perfectly aligned with the ground, and the ceiling with the sky.... But isn’t the big robot doing the same move as the pilots? So why is the Conn-pod still perfectly leveled if it’s inside a Jaeger that no longer is? Does that mean the the Conn-pod itself is pivoting inside the Jaeger to compensate for the Jaeger’s movements at all times; therefore ensuring that the two pilots are in an environment where the floor they are standing on remains perfectly leveled, no matter what the Jaeger surrounding them does? Hopefully, the movie will expand more on this... Also, how old are those pilots? I feel like I’m going to be watching “Ender’s Game” meet “Pacific Rim”. Then again, with the previous generation of pilots now either dead, retired, or I suppose assuming positions of command, like Mako Mori, it makes sense that the new recruits could be pretty young… Chuck Hansen did start piloting a Jaeger when he was 16, so it seems that the PPDC does accept candidates that are younger than 17. I guess that, with pilots in the first movie aged 21 to 44, and the relationships between them being diverse (ex: father and son), I just didn’t expect this to be an all teenagers / very young adults (I doubt any of them are older than 25) team of pilots this time around. Actually, everything from the younger main cast to the music choice in the trailer (and the teaser) seems to be geared towards attracting a younger audience. I’m not sure if that’s because they believe that most people who fell in love with the first movie were teenagers, or because they are hoping to make “Pacific Rim” more appealing to them by having new pilots that are easier for kids to relate to. Even the fact that the only movie novelization I’ve seen so far is called “Pacific Rim Uprising: The Junior Novel”, with the products details listed on Amazon as:

Age Range: 8 - 12 years

Grade Level: 3 - 7

Paperback: 160 pages

Publisher: Insight Kids (March 27, 2018)

Language: English

has me greatly concerned that the targeted audience of the sequel is indeed going pre-teens to teenagers, with very little thought given to more mature audiences. It also makes me question if they are going to be willing to take as many risks as they did in the first by sacrificing so many pilots to the war this time around... I mean yes, “Pacific Rim” was an homage to anime and kaiju-era movies... But it was a very dark and gritty homage with the perfect balance between drama, humor, tragedy and hope... People call it “silly” and a movie about “big robots punching monsters in the face!”, but you are given a 15 minutes opening that features two tightly bonded young pilot brothers that deeply kicks you in the guts! Then, the first time you see Cherno Alpha, Crimson Typhoon, and Striker Eureka all get together on a mission out there, two of those teams gets dispatched right away! I remember sitting in the theater looking at the screen in shock and disbelief while asking my friend “Wait. Did that just happen? Did they just kill those 2 teams after having barely introduced them - just like that?” And my friend, equally stunned, just going “Yes. Yes they did.” That’s when shit for me got 100% real for me, and I knew that the movie wouldn’t fuck around. Yancy had just been the beginning, and no one in this universe was safe. The stakes got crazy high! So, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but as much as part of me hated the “there are no heroes in a world where heroes can’t die” mentally, it still profoundly resonated with me and gave the movie some weight. Because back then, I happened to be in a situation where I was very sick and disabled, and had to learn a very important lesson in order to be able to cope with and accept my condition - life isn’t fair, anyone can fall. Bad things happen to good people, and sometimes nothing can be done about it no matter how hard you try to prevent it. (For everything else, there is fanfiction! Lol! And thank the PTB for that!) But yes, it broke my heart into a thousand tiny pieces to watch Chuck Hansen die before he was ever given a chance to finally figure out who he was, among others... But all those things also had a profound psychological and emotional impact, and it did add to that sense of realism in an otherwise very unrealistic universe and movie. Guillermo Del Toro made me believe in the unbelievable. He made me forget that it was a movie about giant robots punching giant monsters in the face, and experience that movie first and foremost through my heart. I am also heavily crediting Travis Beacham for the screenplay, the actors for having brought those characters to life, and everyone else that took such great care in building that universe (set designs, costumes, etc.)... But I think that GDT is hugely responsible for giving the movie its soul in the way he directed the actors, and seemingly got involved in every little detail of the movie’s production, including the 3D conversion. This was a work of pure love, and it showed. And even today, the movie is still helping me cope with a certain level of survivor’s guilt, given that I now have access to proper medical cares and treatments; including monthly injections that have gotten rid of about 70% of my symptoms, and allowed me to start living again. . Meanwhile, I still have friends, that are as ill as I was a year and a half ago, that are still looking for a diagnosis, are left without resources, or then again, share the same diagnosis but don’t respond well to the same treatment I’m taking, etc. It wasn’t fair that I was unable to leave my room most of the time for 7 years, and depended on others to prepare my meals and care for me... And yet, it’s no more fair that I’m getting better now, when so many of those that are in similar situation aren’t getting better, or can’t... Anyone can fall... Meaning all I can do is continue to care about those people, and help where I can. Otherwise, I have to accept that sometimes, things are the way they are. Life is not about what you deserve, or being fairly rewarded for your efforts; but simply about your ability to live with and take advantage of the resource you do have, while ideally finding ways to share those resources with others, when and if you can. Raleigh’s journey in “Pacific Rim”, to me, heavily reflected that. Actually, pretty much every character shared a similar journey where they had to learn to trust in others, and let go of the things beyond control. Beyond the Jaegers and the Kaiju themselves, one of the key elements of “Pacific Rim” was that it was, in Del Toro’s words, a movie about “the world saving the world”: “I just wanted to show small stories of people trying to come together to survive, because I didn’t want to make a war movie. I wanted to make an adventure movie about people who come from all over the world. We have an African American leader, we have a Japanese girl, we have Korean-Chinese guy, we have an Australian team. I wanted to show all the world coming together. It’s not just two characters; among them all they don’t understand each other. All of them have great differences. And the thing is as the movie resolves you see these characters be above all those differences. I wanted that. I didn’t want to make it just, “Oh if these two guys only got along.” Everybody, everybody, which is like a movie set. On a movie set if you don’t come together, we are all very different, but it works. I really love the idea of coming together without a certain jingoist or, you know, this or this side saved the work. Everybody did.” That’s why I find many debates regarding who’s the protagonist of the original movie sort of silly, and, like I’ve expressed before, I see Raleigh Becket as being more or less a leading character in a supportive role. i.e. The story is no more about him than it is about any other character. Once again, anyone can fall, and anyone in life will do what they can with the internal and external resources they have. Sometimes, someone just happens to be at the right place at the right time with the right resources, and they wind up getting the credit for something that was built through the efforts of countless others before and/or with them. Though history and society will generally tend to remember the leaders, and/or those that used what was done before them to innovate and come up with something groundbreakingly new, we are all connected. Raleigh basically just happens to be the character introducing us to the world of “Pacific Rim”, and whose story arc we are invited to follow first. But every character in the movie has their own stories, doubts, and issues to come to terms with before they can all save the world together. And that’s why I’ve connected with this movie so strongly, and why I love it so much. So, regarding the teaser that was first presented to us, for me, in terms of marketing strategy, it heavily missed the mark of what the first movie had been all about. I’m wondering if that was meant to show that, while the Kaiju were gone, world leaders have all been essentially patting themselves on the back on a job well done and taking credit for it. Were they trying to convey that humanity, once again, has learned very little from history, and its ego has inflated to the point where suddenly Jaegers became all about “Look how awesome we are, and always have been!”, and “Why pilot a Jaeger? Because YOU’re worth it!” Were they trying to convey that, in the future, humanity has gone back to the mentality of the “glory days” where Jaeger pilots used to be rock stars, and people thought Kaiju no longer posed any significant threat? Was that teaser meant to be an actual recruiting video that would fit within the mindset of that universe, 10 years in the future (which could make sense, and would therefore sort of make up for how weirdly self-centered it was)? Or was it simply how the marketing team in charge of “Pacific Rim: Uprising” chose to promote the movie, thinking that this is what audiences, nowadays, would get massively excited about? Because, yes, I do love Jaegers. And, of course, John Boyega is a wonderful actor and a pure treasure that can totally rock that drivesuit! But where is the sense that Jaegers are only as good as their pilots (plural), and the stronger the bond between them, the better they fight? Why having made the choice to show a single Ranger alone (unless that teaser was made very quickly to present fans with some form of publicity, and he was the only actor available to shoot it)? And quite frankly, I don’t personally give a single damn about Jaegers being “me” times a thousand! What is a Jaeger? A Jaeger is the very embodiment of the deep trust and empathy shared by two (or more) people who genuinely love each other regardless of the type of relationship they share. A Jaeger is that love and that bond times a thousand – two (or more) beating hearts made one that burn as bright as the sun, and have the power to move mountains! You become the most heroic version of yourself through your connection with others – through learning to balance your own needs with theirs, and using the potential you have been gifted with to serve the common good. This is what “Pacific Rim” was all about to me, and this is the message that the teaser, as far as I’m concerned, has sadly failed to convey. And while the actual trailer does show pilots fighting together, and present them all working together as a team and joining forces to survive, once again there’s something slightly off about the vibe I’m getting from it. Like it’s a movie that is a lot more about new cool Jaegers, and how they and the Kaiju have evolved, rather than the complex human connections that are required to power up those Jaegers. I know I’m probably overthinking this, and most people are likely just going “Whoohoohoo! NEW ROBOTS, WEAPONS AND KAIJU! COOL FIGHTS! AWESOME DUDE!” And, like my partner told me, “No matter what they do, given everything the original represents for you and why it means so much, I’m not sure anything else they could ever come up with will ever measure up.” And maybe he’s right. But still, instead of getting me all excited for the sequel, what the teaser and the trailer have managed to do is confuse the Anterverse out of me! Now, I’m sort of scared that they essentially took shortcuts with this movie by using elements of what they thought made the first one so popular with the (apparently young) public, but without understanding the deeper message behind the story, and/or Guillermo Del Toro’s vision of that universe. Every little detail in “Pacific Rim”, from the set pieces to the colors that were used, were filled with tons of symbolism and meaning. 4 years later, I still continue to discover and notice new little things every time I watch it. I’m not expecting the new director to copy Guillermo Del Toro’s style or use the same symbolism, but I’m hoping he’ll find ways to put nearly as much love and thought into every scene, and that the sequel will hopefully have as much depth and soul to it, too. Offer us beautiful robots, monsters, and actions scene, yes; but don’t forget what the movie was about first and foremost – the power, beauty and complexity of human connection. Another thing that sort of completely turned me off about the teaser is the choice of music. The Pacific Rim’s main theme is one of the most addictive and distinctive movie themes I’ve ever heard. The first few notes start to play, and that’s it! I’m back in that world!

Even the movie trailers of the first installment chose a soundtrack that had strong elements of pure epicness to it.

For example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5guMumPFBag , and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUR1IoPdBg8 Everything felt like it was larger than life and imposing. While that “I’m a Beast” song, combined with the would-be flattering message “a Jaeger is YOU times a thousand and tall as a mountain”, seems to have been put out there to appeal to self-centered and easily influenced kids in search of thrills who are supposed to go “Oh yeah man! I’m a Jaeger, I’m a beast, I’m so cool, dude!” Maybe I’m getting too old for this (I was born barely 6 months after Herc Hansen, after all). But, to me, it basically looked like the teaser was meant to be the equivalent of a sports car line publicity, with Jaegers replacing the cars! I just… I don’t get it. Yeah, this worked for the PPDC’s glory days, I suppose; and if the world has reverted back to that mentality, then please, by all means! But still, I’m hoping it’s just a phase, and they’ll move out of it soon. And, while the music in the trailer itself takes back some elements of the original soundtrack, it’s weirdly mixed with a rap song, and combined with videogame looking CGI. Somehow, this makes me feel like I’ve just stepped into a completely different world that has very little to do with the massive scope and depth of the original. Don’t get me wrong, I can appreciate a good rap song remixed with a movie theme every now and then... But here, I find it to be heavily distracting, and it makes me disconnect from that sense of awe I get every time I watch those huge robot titans appear on screen in the trailers the original “Pacific Rim”. It works for movies like “The Fast and the Furious”, but here it messes with the overall tone, and gives me the impression that the robots are once again an oversized version of a sports car and next thing you know we’ll be watching them racing each other for thrills! If they keep at it, I’ll start nicknaming that sequel “Pacific Rim: Tokyo Drift”. That being said, there are a few things I’m excited about. Like the return of Mako Mori, Newton Geiszler, Hermann Gottlieb, and the fact that Gipsy Avenger looks like the child Gipsy Danger and Striker Eureka would have had together if Jaegers could make little Jaegers. Although I am slightly concerned about how they will be using those beloved characters in the new installment. I’m also glad that John Boyega seems like such a huge fan of the first movie, and therefore hoping that’s a good sign, and the storyline will remain true to the first movie, and the extended universe that we’ve gotten thus far. I’m also curious regarding how they will be explaining Jake’s Pentecost backstory, and why Stacker and Mako have never mentioned him in the original movie. Was Stacker even told he had a son (otherwise, I would have expected him to have some parting words for him as well, regardless of whether Jake was there or not, considering that the missions are usually recorded and/or Mako, Herc, or anyone else who would hopefully survive the mission could have relayed his father’s words to him), and how old was he when his father died? And looking at Stacker’s own backstory, i.e. his father having been killed in a fight with a club owner (where his mother was performing) when he was only 10, and little 10-year-old Stacker burning that club down and attacking the club owner in response… Well… It seems that little Pentecost babies tend to take losing their fathers very seriously, and will come after whatever is responsible for their death with everything they’ve got, apparently. Which I do find rather interesting. Otherwise, I’m also a little concerned regarding how they will handle Raleigh, Herc, and even Tendo’s absence from the movie… Basically, I still plan on going to see it, but I’m having huge mixed feelings about it, and trying to keep my expectations as low as humanly possible (going down to the breach deep under the Pacific ocean to be sure...). That being said, please don’t let my own doubts, concerns, and personal preferences keep you from being all psyched about the new sequel, and loving the teaser and trailer to death! Truth is, if the original had never existed, and that trailer had been my very first introduction to anything “Pacific Rim”, there’s a possibility I would have been jumping up and down, cheering, and unable to wait to see that movie! I do love “Transformers” (in general), used to be a huge fan of “Power Rangers”, and my favorite TV show as a small child growing up was “Goldorak” (in English “UFO Robot Grendizer”). But “Pacific Rim” had a very different and unique feel to it that felt inspired by those series, without exactly becoming them. “Go Go PPDC Rangers!” doesn’t sound quite right in my mind... Except here. Probably the only place where I want to see those two related. Lol!

#Pacific Rim #Pacific Rim Uprising #Pacific Rim: Uprising #Pacific Rim 2 #Still trying to make up my mind about this...#My thoughts #My Posts

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flowerpot101 · 7 years

Text

Civil War

Avengers x Reader, Tony Stark x Platonic Reader

Summary: Reader is a nomad, hasn’t worked for S.H.I.E.L.D in over a decade, but she gets pulled into the Civil War.

Word Count: 3808

Warning: Cussing, mentions of death, small description of a wound.

A/N: This story has an OC character to make this whole thing work.

She was in her kitchen cooking dinner when she heard a knock on her door but she ignored it. The knocking continued for another five minutes and Y/N finally gave up, she turned the stove down to low and walked towards the door. Unlocking it, she pulled the door open, it was pouring down quite heavily. There was no one right in front of the door but there was a certain red head that was at the bottom of the stairs.

Letting out a sigh, with both arms on each side of the door, “What do you want Romanoff?”

“We need to talk.” As she started walking towards Y/N, her eyes rolled and nodded.

Stepping away from the door but not closing it, she went back to the kitchen. From there she could hear the small click of the door closing and Natasha’s footsteps coming towards the room. Y/N turned the stove up and continued to cook. Natasha let out a deep sigh as she went to grab a cutting board and knife, setting the peppers on it once she had cleaned them; she started to cut them in slim slices.

“I’m not helping you with this little civil war that is going on.” Y/N said monotonously, not really caring for whatever is bound to happen.

“Not even when the Captain has a certain friend of yours on his side now?” Y/N stopped when she heard the words fall from her mouth.

Coming up to her side, completely forgetting the food that was cooking on the stove, “What do you mean?”

Natasha set the knife down, turning to face Y/N, letting out a breath, “Someone, most likely Clint, was able to convince her to come back to fight with them, they out number us now and with Lilac, we have no chance and you know that.”

Y/N turned to put her hands on the counter, hunching over as she let out, “Damn it.” She slapped the counter and walked away exasperated. She was pacing the kitchen now, “Why? Why would they bring her back into this mess?” Looking up towards Nat as she continued to pace the room; her face full of worry and confusion.

“I don’t know, but we need you, I know what happened to you years ago put a drift between the two of you but this is not going to end well for anyone.” Her hands coming up to the counter to lean over, “Tony needs you now more than ever.”

Y/N let out a deep sigh, “I’m sorry… But I can’t, I’m not going to join in on their little civil war.”

Natasha nodded her head understanding as she left to go out the door. Y/N could once again hear the soft click of the door as Natasha left. Y/N stood there in the middle of the room, contemplating everything; she let out a deep sigh as she shook her head.

Time Skip to Airport.

Sam, Scott, Clint, Wanda, Lilac, Bucky, and Steve were all standing in the parking structure of the airport when the alarm began to blare. Bucky was the only one who could understand what the person over the speaker was saying, “They’re evacuating the airport.”

Sam let out a slight hush towards Steve, “Stark.”

“Stark?” Scott said questioningly.

Steve looked at everyone as he told them, “Suit up.”

In his Captain America suit, Steve ran towards the helicopter but stopped short when a device hit the top of it causing the whole thing to become disabled. Iron-Man and War Machine were flying down to land in front of the helicopter.

Tony began to say, “Wow it’s so weird how you run into people at the airport.” His mask uncovered his face as he looked at Rhodey, “Don’t you think that’s weird?”

Rhodey replied with, “Definitely weird.”

Steve looked towards the two, “Hear me out, Tony. That doctor, the psychiatrist, he’s behind all of this.”

That’s when Black Panther leaped over and landed close to Steve, in his gruff voice, “Captain.”

Steve gave him a slight nod, “Your highness.”

“Anyway…” Tony starts to say as he began to walk around Rhodey, “Ross gave me thirty-six hours to bring you in. That was twenty-four hours ago. Can you help a brother out?”

“You’re after the wrong guy,” Steve declared.

“Your judgment is askew, your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday.”

Steve interrupted,” And there are five more super soldiers just like him. I can’t let the doctor find them first, Tony. I can’t.” As Steve gave a slight shook of his head.

Steve turned to look back at Natasha, “Steve… You know what’s about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?”

He looked back to Tony, “All right, I’ve run out of patience.” Tony’s hands came up slightly to cup around his mouth as he yelled out, “Underoos!”

That’s when Spider-Man shot one of his webs at Cap’s shield and pulling it away from him as he shot another web to cover his hands. Peter landed in a crouched form on top one of the many surrounding machines. In the background you could hear Tony say, “Nice job, kid.”

In his raspy teenaged voice, “Thanks. I could have stuck the landing a little better, it’s just… New suit.” But quickly stopped himself before he could offend Tony, “It’s nothing, Mr. Stark. It’s perfect. Thank you.”

Tony’s arm came up in a motion, “Yeah, we don’t really need to start a conversation.”

“Okay. Cap. Captain.” Peter slightly stuttered out as he gave the Captain a small salute. Then pointed slightly to himself, “Big fan, I’m Spider-Man.”

“Yeah, we’ll talk about it later.” Tony let out.

Peter let out a deep exhale of air, “Hey, everyone.”

“Good job.” Tony said slightly done with Peter.

Steve gives a slight nod to Tony as he says, “You’re been busy.”

“And you’ve been a complete idiot. Dragging in Clint… “Rescuing” Wanda from a place she doesn’t even want to leave, a safe place. I’m trying to keep…” Tony let out a deep sigh, “I’m trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart.”

“You did that when you signed,” Steve declared.

“All right, we’re done.” Tony’s voice grew louder, “You’re gonna turn Barnes over, you’re gonna come with us, now, because it’s us… or a squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction about being impolite.” Tony swallows before he whispers out, “Come on.”

Steve’s head was turned away when Falcon’s voice came through the comm., “We found it.” Telling Steve that their quinjet was in hanger five, then his arms came up so Clint could shoot an arrow to cut apart the web. Scott was in his smaller former, running across Peter’s arm as he became big to grab the Captain’s shield and taking it over to him. The fighting was on.

Everyone was scattered about the airport. Inside Spider-Man was fighting against Bucky and Falcon. Steve was fighting with T’Challa, making sure he doesn’t get close to Bucky. Then Scott was telling Cap to throw one of the mini gadgets at the presumed water tank which in reality was a truck filled with gasoline. Everyone on the Captain’s side began to run to hanger five where the quinjet resided but were stop short when Vision shot a yellow laser across them.

Both sides stood across from one another, Peter was the first to realize that they were outnumbered, “Uhm, you guys, they have more people than us.”

Then all of them realized as Tony stood there shocked when he saw Lilac standing on Steve’s side; they were really outnumbered. He let out a deep sigh but then something amazing happened.

From all across the airport, Tony’s team could see someone running in the distance on top of the airport. When they got to the edge, they pushed off, flying towards them as she came barreling towards them. Her long wavy white hair flowed behind her as she came down closer to the ground. The unknown woman was above Clint before he could react, she picked out one of the arrows from the holster on his back. Then she was rolling onto the ground then in a fluid motion she came to a stand, softly turning on her heel to face towards Cap’s side. She was examining the arrow, everyone stood there in shock. Very few knew who she was but that didn’t matter right now.

Her head looked up to look at Clint who held a smirk of his own, she began to walk towards him as she held the arrow between her two index fingers, “I thought I gave you a special bow so that you wouldn’t have to use these.” She said teasingly as she pointed the arrow at him.

“Well I like my own, think it’s more efficient compared to yours,” he said cockily.

She let out a small laugh,” Yeah, but at least you wouldn’t run out of arrows.”

“Y/N, stop your chatting and get over here,” Tony yelled out fiercely.

Y/N looked back at Tony with a deadly glare, “Listen, I don’t have to be here.” As her arms came out to motion around her, “But I am, so if I want to chat with Clint then I will.” She said menacingly before turning to Clint while smiling, “Besides, the last I saw him, he had just married Laura and now I hear, he’s got three kids.”

“Y/N!” Tony yelled out but she just waved her arm away at him.

She got closer to Clint, whispering gently into his ear in an unknown language. Y/N pulled away as she watched Clint look down and she nodded in understanding. Clint looked at her, he gently hushes out to her so she’s the only one to hear, “You should join your side before Tony thinks you gave up on him.”

She nodded; reaching back she put the arrow back into its holder. As she began to walk backwards from the team, she could feel everyone’s eyes on her but one felt like fire to her. Her head turned to stare at Lilac as she gave a fiery glare her way, Y/N could only give the younger woman a small nod in understanding. Finally reaching Tony’s side, their eyes met and both of them gave each other a small look before setting their eyes on the Captain and his members. Then they were all running.

Y/N was fighting against Lilac, both of them not giving up. Neither of them had seen each other in years, not since they both left S.H.I.E.L.D. Lilac left when she couldn’t trust anyone anymore after the truth came out about her partner and that even the important people of the agency knew. Y/N left when she was backstabbed by agents who didn’t trust her. No one trusted her anymore, not when the truth about her past with Hydra was revealed. She told them what was the truth but no one listened, Y/N knew that Fury knew the truth; but that just wasn’t enough.

The fight between everyone was getting more intense as time went by. Explosions were going off and people were being thrown about. Soon Y/N separated herself from Lilac to go help Natasha while Lilac went to go fight whoever she could. That’s when she heard a loud holy shit fall from Spider-Man and a loud shocked laugh. She turned around to come to face a giant of an Ant-Man. Then everyone was being thrown about. A bus hurdled its way towards Black Panther but Vision was able to stop it, in the distance she could see Bucky and Rogers run towards the hanger but she knew someone else would deal with it.

Over the comms she could hear Tony, “Okay, anybody on our side hiding any shocking and fantastic abilities they’d like to disclose… I’m open to suggestions.”

Y/N let out a small, “Hold on.”

Her body became stiff as she faced towards the giant man, her eyes began to glow a deep blue. Legs were slightly bent but locked in position, arms coming up to move elegantly around her, as a shining blue color came from her hands. Y/N brought her hands in front of her, palms facing one another, fingers bent; a dark vibrant blue began to appear, she then began to say a spell into them. Then her arms came out as the spiraling blue shot out, forming into a giant monster of a man, a replica of the Ant-Man.

“Knew I could count on you, L/N,” as Tony’s voice came over the comms once again.

Her eyes were still glowing, but could feel something hurdling her way before it could hit her she bent forward. Looking to her left she could see a burning hole through one of the trucks, she then turned her head to look over her right, Lilac stood glaring. Both woman were glaring but soon dispersed, knowing now was not the time to start their own civil war.

Bucky and Steve had made it towards the quinjet for they now were flying away. Falcon, Iron-Man, War Machine and even Y/N were all flying after it, in her ear she could hear Rhodey ask Vision for help but it quickly back fired. Y/N saw as Falcon dodged the fiery yellow, she saw it getting closer to Rhodey but before it could, she flew in front of it, hitting her right in the middle of her chest. The power of it causing her to fly backwards a few yards as she began to slowly fall down, crashing into the grassy field, everyone stopped as they flew down to her. Tony quickly asked F.R.I.D.A.Y to see if your body was healing like it always did and let out a sigh of relief when she told him that you were. In the distance they could hear the sirens and they watched as the quinjet left.

Bucky, Steve and Lilac were on their way to the Hydra base that held the other five super soldiers. While everyone from Steve’s team that was left behind was being cuffed and taken to a much secured prison for criminals. Tony carried your body and everyone else followed, to go back to the compound. However, this was not the ending; Tony would soon find out the truth and will go after the two super soldiers.

Time Skip to Tony Arriving at the Base.

Y/N was behind Tony as he began to shove the metal doors apart, behind it stood Bucky with his sniper pointed at them and Steve behind his shield. Lilac stood behind the two with her hands blazing with electricity. Tony began to explain to them that he knew the truth now.

Then all five of them began to look for the room that held the other super soldiers. They finally found it, when walking in the lights flickered on. Over the speaker a muffled voice came out, “If it’s any comfort, they died in their sleep.”

Y/N ignored the man’s word as they walked in further. She was only here for Tony when he found out the truth. After a while of talking, the man had a screen open up to a video; the video of Tony’s parent’s death. Bucky and Lilac stood away, while Y/N stood a couple of feet behind Tony. When the video was over, Tony went to attack Bucky but was stopped by Steve. Instead of looking back at Steve his body turned to you.

“Did you know?” His soft broken voice came out, his face falling as he looked at you.

You swallowed before looking up, “Yes, in a way.” Tony’s nose flared so you continued, “Hydra had planned for Howard’s death for years… at one point they even considered me doing the job but then I had the accident.” You took a deep breath as Tony looked down to your leg, “When Howard took me in, I told him the truth, I told him that they were going to kill him and I even said to not have your mother in the car if he ever left with serum inside the car…” She let out a sad sigh, “But obviously he didn’t listen.”

Tony then turned to Steve to ask the same question, ignoring Lilac’s scoff. Then everyone was fighting again. The three men fought one another as the two girls did their own fighting. They quickly all got out as part of the building began to fall apart. Punches were being thrown, as they heard loud grunts coming from large cylinder room. Lilac occasionally got shots of electricity towards Y/N hitting her wherever. But soon Y/N got a hold of her and into a choke hold, putting pressure as she saw in her side vision of the three men falling to the underground area. Lilac was out like a baby.

Quickly Y/N got down to where they were, she stood on the higher level as they fought, not wanting to interrupt their fighting. Then she watched as Bucky’s arm came up to grab the arc reactor of Tony’s suit, digging his fingers inside to rip it out. But then a loud blast came from it, causing Bucky’s arm to be scorched off. Y/N watched at Steve and Tony began to fight, finding a good point to join them. She finally came up from her position about to join them but that never came.

A hot blast hit her back as she was blown into the wall. Her back slammed into hard concrete, as her head collided harshly. Her body fell to the ground in a slump. She squirmed as she felt pain go up through her body. There was now a large opened wound in the back of her head. Her eyes blinked and blinked, losing their sight. Her mouth was agape as she gasped for air; all she could do was gasp over and over. Her head looked over to Bucky as he too laid there on the cold hard ground. Their eyes met, e/c meeting blue, Bucky could see her distress, he could see her life slipping away, and he couldn’t do anything about it.

He remembered you from Hydra’s files that were of the agents who had escaped. Your eyes disconnected as you looked back up to the ceiling. Remembering everything you’ve done in the past. Bucky watched and you listened to the fighting. But then you took your last breath and Bucky turned away.

The fight was coming to an end; Bucky’s flesh arm came out grabbing Tony’s ankle as Steve came up and grabbed him. Soon Stark was on the ground with Steve on top of him as he pounded and pounded his shield into the arc reactor to shut off the power of the suit. Steve fell to the side of Tony as he panted heavily. Then Tony looked over for you, to make sure you were fine. That’s when he saw you lying on the floor motionless.

His face fell even deeper, his heat beating like crazy, “Y/N? Y/N are you awake?” He took a deep breath when you didn’t answer, his heart clenched, “Y/N?!” He began to scream over and over. He let out a final silent, “Y/N?”

“I’m here.” She let out gently.

Tony took a deep breath in as his nerves came down from his fear of losing you, “Don’t do that to me woman.”

She let out a small laugh, “Sorry.”

Steve watched the whole interaction between the two of you as he came up to Bucky’s side to pull him up and take him away.

Y/N didn’t hear what Tony yelled out to Steve but she soon heard a clatter of metal hitting concrete. She got off the ground slowly as she could, standing she began to walk over to Tony, but couldn’t for her right foot was twisted at an odd angle. Lifting her right leg up, it came down to the floor and she twisted it putting back into place while making a loud crunching noise.

“Oh, please don’t do that again,” Tony cringed out.

She glared at him, “Don’t tell me what to do.” She let out a deep sigh, shaking her head, “me and you are gonna have a long chat about this whole ordeal.”

Tony just swallowed as you helped him up and get out of the building. Lilac was long gone; either went back into hiding or followed Steve and Bucky; who knows. They had greater matters to fix, like the fact they will have to explain to the whole world with what happened. Y/N let out a sigh as she realized, that she may be a nomad but that might soon change with the events that happened here today.

Months Later.

Y/N sat in nothing but a sports bra and spandex shorts; she sat on a cold metal table as she swung her left leg back and forth. She would have done it with the right but that wasn’t happening since it wasn’t there right now. She was in Wakanda, getting a new vibranium leg for her old one was no longer in good use. Her head was lulling back as she waited. Y/N heard the door whoosh open and looked up; there stood Steve Rogers, staring at her in deep shock.

He scanned her body and his eyes stopped on the missing leg. Before he could ask her, she answered the question he was thinking, “I was thirteen when I lost it. It was a mission gone wrong during my Hydra years.”

His ears perked up when she said Hydra. She let out a small giggle, “And yes, I was part of Hydra once but I’m nomad now, at least I think I am.” She let out a small sigh.

Steve looked at her confusingly, “If your nomad… Then why help Tony?”

Y/N swallowed while nodding her head, “Because he’s family, his father took me in when I needed a place. You don’t turn your back on family or the people you love. Which I gotta say I admire about you, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone else like you and I’m real happy about that.” As she smiled towards him.

For the next hour, the two talked and talked, slowly realizing they had more in common then anyone else they had ever met. Steve watched as they put her metal leg back on, the scorch line along the where hydra first gave you the leg reminded him of Bucky. Everything about you made Steve remind him about his friend. He knew, right there and then, that you three were going to be closer than anyone could ever imagine.

This may be the ending for them but it was the start of a new beginning to a great future, one that would hold great pain but great fondness.

@dekahg

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